Smoky Mountain Folk
by Andreax
Summary: Mulder and Scully investigate a fraud case in North Carolina
1. Chapter 1

Smoky Mountain Folk

Chapter 1

Title: Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 1

Author: Andrea

Rating: This chapter is T, but the story will be M eventually.

Category: X-File, MSR, Scully POV

Disclaimer: Mulder and Scully aren't mine, but everyone else is.

Notes: Thanks to Dan and Karen for beta reading.

Spoilers: thru season 6.

Feedback: Please!

Washington D.C.

Tuesday April 6, 1999

8:54 am

April is a beautiful month in D.C. The cherry trees are in full bloom, adding their delicate scent to the fresh spring air. I usually only get to partake of that freshness briefly in the morning but I did try to enjoy it after work, as well. The air was different then; the cleanness having given way to the staleness of civilization. If the weather held and the weekend was nice, I'd make sure to get up early and get my fill. That thought put me in a rather pleasant mood for a Tuesday morning as I walked down the hall toward the basement office.

"Hey, Scully," Mulder smiled at me as I opened the door.

"Morning," I returned his smile.

"You seem to be in a good mood," he leaned back in his chair to look me over.

I'd never felt completely comfortable under his gaze. I'd never been able to decipher exactly what he was thinking as his eyes travelled up and down my body.

"I am," I cleared my throat as I broke free of his stare and moved toward my chair. "It's a beautiful spring day."

"Good day for a country drive, then?" he grinned and handed me a file.

My heart fell when I saw the file had already been assigned a case number. That would make it a lot harder to wiggle out of going to whichever godforsaken locale Mulder had decided would be the focus of his particular brand of investigation. I was surprised when I read further.

"We're investigating fraud now?"

"That's why the case file was opened," he clarified. "But I think perhaps the fraud allegations are unwarranted. Keep reading," he nodded at me.

It only took a minute for me to discover what had captured Mulder's interest. After taking a deep breath, I pulled off the pictures that had been attached to the file with a paper clip. I tried to remain expressionless as I flipped through them and then calmly reattached them to the folder. I knew better than to ask Mulder if he was serious. I tried to think of arguments that would dissuade him, but I knew everything I'd come up with would only dissuade me.

"So?" he asked expectantly.

"What do you want me say?" I was trying not to laugh as I handed the file back to him. "I'm gathering that you'd like to prove that those pictures are not fakes."

"Every expert I've had look at them has said they appear to be genuine," he informed me.

"How long have you been investigating this?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Since last week," he shrugged.

"So why am I just finding out about it now?" I crossed my arms over my chest. "Why do I only get to participate in the field part of the investigations, Mulder?"

"Uh," he looked taken aback. "It really only takes one person to do the research and you were busy with that lecture at Quantico last week," he reminded me.

"You could've mentioned it yesterday," I pointed out.

"I didn't hear back from the last of the experts I'd sent the photos to until this morning," he explained, "And you wouldn't even have considered looking into this if experts hadn't seen the pictures first."

He had me there.

"I know what you're thinking," he continued.

"I strongly doubt that," I replied sardonically.

"Okay, besides the fact that you think I'm nuts," he began, "You don't believe in the existence of -,"

"Before you go on, Mulder," I cut him off. "You do realize that this case bears a striking similarity to a case from 1917 in England."

"I know," he nodded.

"And the girls who took those pictures admitted that they had faked them," I added.

"Yes, Scully," he sighed. "I know all about the Cottingley case, but Frances Griffiths maintained until her death that one of those pictures was actually real."

"What does that prove?" I shrugged.

"If they were all faked, why not just say that? She'd already admitted that four out the five were faked," he argued.

"To prevent total humiliation?" I suggested. I regretted the sarcasm in my tone immediately.

"If she hadn't maintained that one picture was real, people probably would have forgotten all about the story a long time ago," he countered. "Her claims made the story that much more notorious."

"Then maybe that's why," I pointed out.

"We'll never know, Scully. The original plates belong to a private collector now, but I would love to get my hands on them," his sigh held a hint of melancholy.

"Mulder, those plates are so old, you have no idea what kind of damage might have been done just by improper storage, not to mention the quality of the camera that took them in the first place," I tried to appease him.

"That's why we need to investigate these," his face broke into a smile. "They were taken with a good camera, but they were developed by Amy's father, Ted Johnson. He's an amateur photographer."

"And the pictures that are being sold are reprints made by Amy's uncle?" I tried to recall.

"Not from the negatives," he shook his head. "Ted Johnson destroyed them almost immediately. He knew they would spell trouble. His brother-in-law, Chris McKinnon, got a hold of the pictures and has been selling copies he made from those pictures, not from the negatives."

"That's why it's Chris McKinnon that's being suspected of fraud," I nodded. "And if he hadn't claimed that they were genuine, no one would care."

"Well that and the money he's asking," Mulder added.

"If there are no negatives, what are we investigating exactly?" I was curious.

"I want to talk to Amy and her father, see his set up, look at the camera. I hope Amy will show us where she took the pictures," he was chewing on the inside of his cheek pensively.

"You do realize that we probably won't be able to come to a conclusion either way, Mulder," I had to point out. "And I doubt the Johnsons are going to be thrilled about the F.B.I. interrogating their 11 year old daughter."

"I know," he nodded, "But it's just Ted and Amy, Mrs. Johnson passed away several years ago"

"Oh," I nodded slowly. That fact explained why an 11 year old girl was wandering around in the woods by herself with a camera. "Where exactly were the pictures taken, anyway?" I didn't read that part of the file.

"Southwest of Asheville, North Carolina," he informed me.

"You aren't seriously planning to drive to North Carolina, are you?" I remembered his earlier comment.

"No, our flight for Asheville leaves at eleven, but we'll still have at least an hours drive after that. I booked us some nice rooms in Bryson City," he added with a smile.

Mulder thought all of the rooms he booked were nice, but he thought his couch was a nice place to sleep, too.

"You just assumed I'd agree to go?" I asked impassively.

"Don't you want to go?" he looked surprised.

"You want to go, Mulder," I clarified. "The question is why you assume that I'll agree to go."

"Because you're my partner," he replied slowly.

"So that means I'll go automatically?"

"Well," he paused. I could tell he wasn't sure how to answer that question. I waited for him to think about his answer. "You don't want to go?" he repeated in confusion.

"Mulder," I heaved a sigh. "One day, just as a special treat for me, you might consider asking me if I want to go."

"Sorry, Scully," he grimaced. "Would you like to come with me to North Carolina to look into a fraud case?"

"It doesn't count right after I said it, Mulder," I frowned at him.

"So you aren't going to come?" he scanned my face.

"Yes, I'm going to come," I rolled my eyes. "I just want to be asked for once, not told,"

"I'll ask next time, I promise," he told me sincerely. "You better go home and pack," he grinned. "I'll pick you up at 10."

"Can I at least check my e-mail first?" I sat down with a huff.

"Sure," he shrugged. "Just don't forget to pack your hiking boots. We're going deep into the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains," his grin returned with a vengeance.

"Woo hoo," I muttered as I turned my chair around.

NC 28

South of Bryson City

North Carolina

Tuesday April 6, 1999

2:38 pm

Mulder was right about the rooms he booked in Bryson City. He'd chosen the Sleep Inn and compared to what he normally picked, the rooms were upscale. They were about average for what we were allowed to expense at the Bureau. I looked out of the window to the west while Mulder drove. It was a nice day in North Carolina too. The mist that gives the Great Smoky Mountains their name had already burned off and the sun was shining brightly. Once we left the built up area around Asheville, trees began to predominate the view. I hadn't realized there were still any thickly forested areas left on this side of the Mississippi. The piny woods of northern Florida and the forests around Atlantic City were nothing compared to the vast expanses of trees here in North Carolina. The Great Smoky Mountain national park featured a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest or so it said in the pamphlet I picked up at the hotel. Why did so many X-files take place in the woods?

"Mulder, why do so many x-files happen in the woods?" I turned to ask him the question I'd been pondering.

"I think it's the chicken or the egg thing, Scully," he didn't take his eyes off the road to answer.

"What?" I turned to look at him.

"Are the woods where they choose to be or is it the only place left where they can be? Are they a natural breeding ground or the last refuge?" his eyes flicked over at me.

For the most part I didn't doubt that the cases he wanted to investigate were genuine, but I tended to believe that they all had a scientific explanation. Mulder's chicken and egg analogy only strengthened my beliefs.

"Good thing it's a national park," I thought aloud. "I doubt this refuge would still be here otherwise." I picked up the file that was sitting on the seat between us. After slipping the pictures out from under the paperclip again, I began to look at them more closely. I couldn't help thinking the images that had been captured had more to do with the sun interacting with the stream in the background, the forest canopy overhead and reflections from the camera lens then anything supernatural.

"Can I be honest with you, Mulder?" I said after taking a deep breath.

"I hope you're always honest with me, Scully. I rely on your honesty," he reached over to put his hand on my knee, violating a couple of Bureau policies, but I refrained from mentioning them.

"I am always honest in everything I say to you," I told him steadily.

"But you don't always say what you're thinking," he nodded. "I know that. I hold back, too."

"You do?" I knew I had no right to be surprised or a little offended, but I was.

"You already think I'm crazy, Scully. I'm afraid you'd have me certified if I told you everything I was thinking," he chuckled and squeezed my knee before putting his hand back on the wheel.

"I'd never have you certified, unless I had no other choice. I'd slip you some meds to see if I could stabilize you, first," I told him dryly as I closed the folder and set it down again.

"Aww, you'd violate your professional ethics for me, Scully? I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me," he grinned unabashedly at me.

"We have vastly different ideas of what qualifies as nice," I shook my head and turned back toward my window.

"So?" he asked after a few seconds.

"What?" I didn't turn back toward him. Sometimes I found his repartee leading me places that I really shouldn't be going and this was one of those times. I needed to re-establish my emotional distance.

"You wanted to be honest with me," he reminded me.

"Right," I nodded. "I'm just a little surprised that you're interested in this case."

"Why? It's an unexplained phenomenon," his expression grew serious.

"C'mon, Mulder. It's a folk tale. You wouldn't investigate Leprechauns, would you?"

"Little people have always intrigued me, Scully," he grinned at me. "But I don't think that's a good example because Leprechauns are part of the host, the Sidhe. You know who the Sidhe are, don't you?"

"The Scullys aren't that long out of Ireland, Mulder, and it's pronounced Shee, not Side-uh," I corrected him smugly. "I do know a lot about Irish folklore. I just didn't know who was related to whom," I rolled my eyes.

"The part that interests me," he continued without acknowledging what I'd said, "Is that every culture has a trickster. Why do you think that is?"

"Well, I think the trickster is a good place to put blame when you don't want to take the blame yourself." It seemed logical to me.

"But every culture, Scully? From Japan to Africa, from Fiji to Brazil, even the Native North Americans had tricksters," he argued his case.

"Everybody screws up, Mulder," I laughed, but he didn't seem to appreciate my attempt at humor and we were silent for a few minutes. "So you're saying you want to investigate this to prove that tricksters really exist?"

"Not exactly," he shrugged.

"Then why exactly?" I wanted to know.

"Scully, how did people react initially when Joseph Lister suggested that infections were caused by germs, something people couldn't see?"

"He was scoffed at, but-,"

"But when enough evidence was amassed, people started listening to him, didn't they?"

"So we're out here amassing evidence?"

"Ya," he nodded.

"And what are we trying to eventually prove to whom?"

"Do I really need to say it?" There was sadness in his eyes when he turned toward me.

"Mulder, we've investigated so much," I began but quickly realized why he'd been reticent.

There were so many things that I wanted to say, but I knew none of them would help in his guilt and grief. I didn't know why it was important to him that other people believed his sister had been abducted by aliens. His sister had been abducted. That was a fact. I couldn't figure out how proving it was an alien abduction would help anything. Did he think that would absolve him of responsibility? Personally, I thought being 12 absolved him, but he had never forgiven himself. I had never forgiven his parents for abandoning him in his grief. I know that Samantha's abduction had shattered their lives, but I'd never been able to understand why they didn't focus all of their love and attention on the child that remained. Tears borne of sorrow, anger and frustration sprang to my eyes. I couldn't blink them away before they spilled onto my cheeks. My attempt to re-establish my emotional distance had obviously failed miserably.

"Shit, Scully, I'm sorry," Mulder reached for my hand when he saw me trying to brush my tears away.

"I should've dropped it," I shook my head.

"I don't think hiding things from each other will help anything," he argued. "If I've learned anything in the past 6 years, Scully, it's that you and I are unstoppable when we're honest with each other. I'm not saying you don't piss me off on a regular basis, but I need you to bring me back when I go overboard, literally and figuratively," he chuckled.

"Thanks, Mulder," I squeezed his hand. "And you piss me off, too."

"And they said it wouldn't last," he took his hand back and put it to his heart.

"The turn for Yellow Creek is coming up on your right," I let him know as I shook my head with a laugh. "Are they expecting us?"

"The Johnsons or the Sidhe?" He smiled, obviously pleased with his own joke. He did, however, pronounce Sidhe correctly. It was nice to know that he'd listened.

"The Johnsons," I rolled my eyes.

"Ya, I talked to Ted this morning. He wasn't thrilled, but he agreed to speak with us," he let me know as he turned onto County Road 1242.

"I don't blame him," I told him honestly. "I know that I'd try to shield my daughter from something like this."

"I wasn't planning to use a rubber hose, Scully," he furrowed his brow at me.

"It will still have a big impact on her young life," I countered.

"I trust you to let me know if I'm pressing her too hard, okay?"

"Okay," I smiled at him.

We fell back into a comfortable silence as we neared the house. The houses were spaced very fair apart and I was looking at the mailboxes for the Johnson's name when Mulder spoke again.

"Oh, and I think the Sidhe are probably expecting us, too, Scully," I could hear the smile on his face without seeing it. "Fairy folk are known for their psychic abilities."


	2. Chapter 2

Smoky Mountain Folk

Chapter 2

Title: Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 2

Author: Andrea

Rating: This chapter is T, but the story will be M eventually.

Category: X-File, MSR, Scully POV

Disclaimer: Mulder and Scully aren't mine, but everyone else is.

Notes: Thanks to Dan and Karen for beta reading.

Spoilers: thru season 6.

Feedback: Please!

Yellow Creek, North Carolina

April 6, 1999

3:05 pm

"That's it on the right," I pointed to a small red-brick house.

The bungalow was set back from the road about a hundred feet. The yard was well maintained and someone had been paying attention to the gardens. Surrounding the house were beds of tulips, daffodils and azaleas. An Eastern Redbud was proudly flaunting its pink blossoms in the middle of the front lawn. Spring, it seemed, came even earlier in North Carolina than it did in the capitol. A white pick-up emblazoned with a green stripe and the words 'Park Ranger' was parked at the top of the gravel drive.

"Ted Johnson is a federal employee?" I turned to Mulder in surprise.

"Ya," he nodded. "It did say that in the case file."

"Well, I guess that's why he agreed to talk to us," I furrowed my brow at him. "He doesn't really have a choice."

"The charges are being considered against his brother-in-law, who isn't a federal employee," he reminded me.

"Still, Ted's co-operation would be expected," I said quietly as I opened my door.

We said nothing more as we headed up the walk and climbed the cement stairs that led to the front door. A few seconds after I knocked, the door was opened by man in his mid-thirties. His sand-coloured hair was longer than was allowed in the Bureau, not to mention the beard and moustache. He was still well groomed, but not by Bureau standards. Apparently being allowed to bring a vehicle home wasn't the only perk of the Parks Service.

"Can I help you?" His quiet brown eyes looked us over carefully.

"Agents Mulder and Scully," Mulder introduced us as we both reached for our badges.

"Oh," he laughed softly. "You aren't what I was expecting. Come in."

Mulder and I were both in jeans and hiking boots. He was wearing a blue Georgetown sweatshirt and I was wearing a green fleece zip-up jacket.

"I thought you were lost hikers who stopped here when you saw the truck," he explained as we took our boots off. "Happens quite a bit 'cause I live so close to the trail."

I knew the Appalachian Trail was nearby. The pamphlets at the motel had been mostly geared toward it.

"How close is it?" Mulder asked.

As he spoke I looked around. Most of the walls were adorned with stunning photographs of what I assumed were the local area. Mulder had mentioned that Ted Johnson was an amateur photographer, but if this was his work, he was an amateur with a boatload of talent.

"At the crest of the mountain behind the house," Ted nodded in that direction. "So," he sighed, when we were seated in the living room. "I hadn't heard anything about those pictures in a while, so I'd hoped the case was being dropped. Chris hasn't been selling any more copies has he? I thought I'd talked him out of it."

"The case hasn't been closed officially," Mulder explained. "And I'm pursuing a different angle."

"What different angle?" Ted looked confused.

I folded my hands in my lap and waited to hear Mulder's explanation myself.

"I had experts look at those photos," Mulder began, "And part of the reason the case hasn't gone forward is because no one is willing to say the pictures have been faked."

"Okay," Ted said slowly as he turned to look at me. I gave him my best 'I'm saying nothing' smile. "What are you saying, exactly?" he turned back to Mulder.

"I'm saying that we're here to figure out exactly what your daughter captured in those pictures, because the camera caught something," Mulder told him.

"Like reflections or fireflies," he looked at Mulder as if he should already have known that. Ted was saying all of the things that I'd wanted to say earlier that morning.

"Mr. Johnson," Mulder began slowly. "My experts have already discounted both of those possibilities. The sun wasn't in the right position to have made those images and they are obviously not fireflies."

"Look, Agent Mulder," Ted Johnson got up and began to pace. "I've just spent the last 2 weeks convincing Amy that she didn't take pictures of fairies. I don't want you putting those ideas back into her head. It's been hard enough for her after my wife's death; she doesn't need to be the object of ridicule, too."

"I understand completely," I finally spoke. "We don't need to speak to Amy about this," I assured him. "But can you tell us where the pictures were taken? We'd like to have a look."

"Ya, it's her favorite spot," he sighed in resignation. "It's about a mile back the way you came and then about three quarters of a mile hike north. There's a faint trail, if you know what you're looking for. I can lead you to the way in from the road, but I can't hike in with you. Amy will be home from school any time now. She has to spend enough time alone when I'm at work so I like to be here when I can."

"We understand," I assured him. "And thank you," I smiled at him and stood up.

"I did want to have a look at your dark room set up," Mulder spoke up.

"How about tomorrow when Amy's in school," he offered.

"Sure," Mulder shrugged.

In five minutes we were back in the car. In another ten we were standing on the side of the road, looking up at where Ted had pointed. After making sure we had water and a compass, he'd left us to go home and wait for his daughter. He'd said the trail was faint, but I saw nothing. Perhaps the Indian Guide would be able to.

"After you," I waved him ahead of me.

As we began to climb, I couldn't help noticing the abundance of wildflowers. In some places the forest floor was almost completely carpeted with painted trilliums. There were wild narcissus, pink and yellow ladies, violets and many other flowers I didn't know the names of. I may not have agreed with Mulder's reasons for being here, but I could certainly appreciate the beauty of my surroundings.

"It *is* nice here, isn't it?" Mulder looked over his shoulder to say.

"Did I say something out loud?" I asked in surprise. "Or have you developed psychic abilities that you forgot to mention?"

"No," he chuckled. "You sighed."

"It's peaceful and very beautiful," I took in a deep breath of the woodsy aroma. I still loved the woods, in spite of anything that had happened in my time with the Bureau.

"Well, at least if nothing else, being my partner has meant that you've been able to see a lot more of this country than most people could ever hope to," Mulder said as he continued up the slope.

"True," I laughed. "But I would've preferred Hawaii to Alaska."

"I'll see what I can do," he smiled over his shoulder.

"And working with you has meant a lot more to me than that, Mulder," I told him earnestly.

"Was any of it positive?" he sounded doubtful.

"You mean aside from the cases we've solved," I shook my head. "I do get a certain amount of job satisfaction out of that."

"Ya, aside from that," he didn't turn around.

"Well, I think that together, you and I have, at a minimum, hindered the dark agenda that we have been made unwilling participants in."

"We have been a pain in their asses, haven't we?"

I could tell from the tone of his voice that he was smiling.

"I think it's is a significant accomplishment," I didn't want to downplay it with humour.

Mulder startled me by stopping in his tracks and turning around.

"But do you think it's enough, Scully? Is hindering them enough?" He had become very serious, making me regret where this conversation had led.

"You know what, Mulder, besides the fact that I don't think either of us will ever stop trying to be pains in their asses, there's one thing you can say about the good ol' U S of A; its citizens have never been known to lie back and let anyone roll over them. It was a fundamental building block of this country and is still a vital part of our cultural identity. It's a part of the American psyche," I told him fervently. "And we aren't the only ones. People have been fighting for what's right for centuries and while it may get held back for a while, the human spirit has always come back and fought for freedom. I can cite example after example, if you want, but you know what I'm talking about. This won't be any different. We won't have to stop them on our own," I watched as a smile overtook his sombre face.

"And you wonder why I love you, Scully," he grinned at me. "You have the ability to lift the weight of the world off of my shoulders, make me feel good about my work and proud to be an American, all in less than a minute."

"Glad I could help," I chuckled. "Now back to work," I nodded up the hill. "We don't want to be wandering around in here after dark."

"You don't want to spend another night in the woods with me?" he laughed as he turned around.

"You still don't have a sleeping bag," I pointed out.

I didn't have much time to wonder if I'd been too forward. Mulder looked over his shoulder again, this time wearing a sly grin. "Why didn't you remind me?"

"Aren't Indian Guides always prepared, just like boy scouts?" I countered.

"No, we build lean-tos, Scully. Sleeping bags are for wimps."

"I guess that explains why you wanted one in Florida," I gave him a jab.

"I was injured. That's different," he defended himself.

"Whatever you say, Mulder," I shrugged. "Are we still following the path? I can't see it."

"I think so," he nodded.

"You think so?" my voice rose in alarm.

"This is the way Ted pointed. I think I can see the path," he stopped to let me catch up. "See?" he pointed up the hill. "And then it doglegs right for a bit."

"I have no idea what you're pointing to," I squinted, hoping that it would help, but it didn't.

"Trust me, Scully. Have I ever led you astray?" He grinned at me.

I gave him my best 'are you seriously asking me that question?' face.

"Besides Florida, which wasn't my fault," he remembered to add. "And I don't mean bad situations. Have I ever gotten us lost?"

I was sure that if given a minute I could think of something, but nothing sprang immediately to mind.

"You can depend on me, Scully. I promise."

I turned around to look where we'd been, but I couldn't see the road. Then I looked left and then finally right, but as far as I could see, there were only trees, wildflowers rocks and bushes. If I was a fairy, I might choose this as home.

"I have to pee," I sighed.

"I can't help you there," he laughed. "You'll have to take care of that yourself."

"What if I pee on a fairy?" I asked cheekily.

"I have heard you don't want to piss off the fairies, but I don't know what happens if you piss on them" he laughed when I rolled my eyes at him. "You could try making lots of noise to scare them off," he suggested.

"So they're like bears?" I felt my forehead wrinkling.

"Ya, everyone knows that, Scully," he laughed again. "I'll head over here and go," he pointed left. "You go over there," he pointed to the right. "And we'll meet back here."

"Fine," I sighed again and traipsed off in the direction he'd pointed.

Mulder was waiting for me when I got back.

"Is this where we were?" I looked around. Even though it still just seemed to be all trees and flowers, our orientation looked slightly different to me.

"Yup, I put this stick here to make sure," he kicked at a branch I hadn't noticed sticking out of the ground.

"Oh, okay." I said nothing more, despite still feeling like something wasn't quite right. If Mulder had marked our spot, this had to be it. "How much further do you think it is?"

"Ted said three quarters of a mile and if walking pace is three miles per hour, it should take less than twenty minutes, but we're walking up hill and we've stopped a couple of times," he explained.

"So not much farther?" I wanted to know.

"No, it shouldn't be far," he was looking up the hill.

"And we're looking for a gully?" I clarified.

"Ya, it should be fairly obvious," he nodded.

I scanned the surrounding area as we began to climb the slope again. The mountainside wasn't flat by any means. It undulated off to the east and west, like a crumpled blanket. It seemed to me that the gully could be easily be hidden behind one of the swells, but I said nothing. I hadn't been the Indian Guide. Instead I fell in behind Mulder and continued to trudge up the hill. His long legs meant his steady pace was almost arduous for me and I had to keep stopping for water. Every so often, he would notice how far ahead of me he was and he'd stop to wait. Forty-five minutes later, we'd still found nothing.

"I need to stop for a minute, Mulder," I called to him. He'd gotten ahead of me again.

"Sorry," he turned and walked back toward me.

I was taking off my jacket, revealing my sweat dampened t-shirt when he reached me. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Why didn't you tell me to slow down?" he asked softly.

"I'm fine, just warm," I shrugged and began to tie my jacket around my waist. "I don't mind working up a sweat," I continued. "It makes me feel healthy. I like exercising outside."

"I like getting sweaty outside, too," he waggled his eyebrows at me.

"Is there anything you can't make sexual?" I shook my head with a sigh.

"A few things, probably," he laughed. "But that was an easy one, Scully."

"I'm glad I can be your straight man," I told him after I took a drink of water. "Maybe when we retire we can take our show on the road."

"Deal," he winked at me. "Ready to get back at it?" he nodded up the hill.

"Ya, but don't you think we should've found it already?"

"To be honest, Scully, I have no idea how long it will take to hike three quarters of a mile up a mountainside. I think you'll agree it's hard work," he tucked a strand of my damp hair behind my ear.

"We should've asked," I sighed.

"Remember how long it took to hike into that logging camp?' he reminded me.

"But those mountains are higher, and the road had lots of switchbacks," I countered. "I trust that Ted wouldn't have let us start this hike if it would've taken us until after dark."

"I just meant that we shouldn't be surprised that it's taking longer than we expected," he explained.

"Maybe we should turn around and come back when Ted can come with us," I suggested. "It's after five," I checked my watch.

"We have 3 hours until the sun sets," he argued. "We must be close."

"Can you at least check the compass for me?"

"Sure," he pulled it out of his pocket and turned around. "Yup, still heading north," he clicked it shut and put it away.

Despite the fact that the Smoky Mountains run north to south, Yellow Creek was situated in a small gap and the mountainside we were climbing faced south. Normally a hiker would be climbing a west or east facing slope.

"Okay," I gave in.

We hiked in silence for another half hour. I was about to raise my concerns again when we crested the slope we'd been climbing. I could see what must be the Appalachian Trail through the trees.

"Shit," Mulder muttered and turned to look back down the mountain.

I said nothing; instead I drank the last of my water. Luckily the way down would be a lot easier. Mulder was chewing the inside of his cheek.

"Why don't we walk east for a bit, see what we can see?" he finally faced me.

"Are you serious, Mulder?" I put my hands on my hips. "We are obviously lost. We should just turn around and walk down. We know the road is at the bottom of this mountain."

"Exactly, Scully," he nodded. "And we aren't lost. The trail is right there," he pointed. "And we know where the road is."

I took a breath to argue with him, but he cut me off.

"Please just listen for a second, Scully," he implored. "I'm mostly agreeing with you here."

"Okay, go on," I gave in – again.

"What is the point of walking down the same way we came up? If we just walk east for a bit, we'll be covering new ground and we may find the gully on the way down. We can't get lost. We know exactly where the road is," he explained his thinking.

"Fine," I sighed. I couldn't really argue with his logic. It made sense.

"Do you have any water left?" he asked as we began to walk east.

"No, I just finished it, sorry," I showed him my empty water bottle.

"I'll just fill up at a stream," he shrugged.

"I don't recommend that, Mulder," I warned him.

"Why not?" He looked puzzled. "It's fresh mountain water."

"Do you want me to list all of the flagellates that could be living in that water?" I arched an eyebrow at him. "Have you heard of Giardia or Cryptosporidium?" I gave him the most common examples.

"No," he frowned at me.

I didn't tell him that Giardia was more commonly known as beaver fever, because I thought he would have a field day with that, so I took another approach. "If the water is contaminated with either, you'll be spending the rest of this trip in the bathroom of your motel room, if not the hospital."

"Don't people drink this water all of the time?"

"I have no idea, Mulder and but if they do I would hope they'd disinfect it with the chlorine tablets you can buy at any outdoors store first."

"Aren't you thirsty?" he looked at me questioningly.

"A bit, but the walk down should be much faster and then it'll be a quick drive back to the hotel," I smiled at him. "Don't worry, we'll be fine," I assured him.

"Okay," he looked relieved. "It has cooled down a little too," he nodded down at me.

"What?"

Saying nothing, he just raised his eyebrows and nodded down at me again. I looked down to find that my nipples had hardened as the temperature dropped. The fact that my t-shirt was a little damp only added to the effect.

"I guess it has cooled down," I shrugged. I wasn't sure if he was expecting me to be embarrassed, but I wasn't. That would be the same as being embarrassed by goose bumps. "Should we start heading down now?"

"Sure," he gave me a quick smile. "Maybe we'll get lucky."

I returned his smile, but said nothing. I still thought we should've turned around a long time ago and waited until Ted Johnson was available to show us where the pictures had been taken. Since hiking down was much easier, Mulder got ahead of me in no time. Even though he was quite far away from me, I wasn't worried because I could still see him. Eventually he realized that I wasn't right behind him and turned to see where I was.

"Are you okay?" he called up to me.

"I'm fine," I answered loudly.

He laughed at my response. "I'll slow down a bit," he told me. Just as he started to turn around again, I saw him lose his footing and then to my horror, he disappeared from my sight.


	3. Chapter 3

Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 3

Yellow Creek, North Carolina

April 6, 1999

5:20 pm

My legs began to move before my brain had processed what was happening. I consciously had to slow myself down to make sure I didn't end up tumbling down the mountain and injuring myself in the process of trying to help my partner.

"Scully!" Mulder's voice was faint.

"I'm coming," I called loudly. "Are you okay?"

I couldn't hear what he said next. I slowed down as I got closer to the spot where he'd vanished. This case was turning out to be too similar to Florida for my taste.

"I can't hear you," I yelled.

"I think I found the gully," his voice was louder now.

"Are you okay?" I repeated.

"Uh," he hesitated.

"What?" I had dropped to my hands and knees and began to crawl. I could see where he'd fallen. The ground had given way beneath him. "Are you hurt?"

"I did something to my ankle," he finally confessed.

"Is it broken or just sprained?" I was desperately hoping for the latter.

"It hurts to put weight on it. How would I know if it's broken?"

"Did you hear it snap or make any noise?" I asked.

"No, I didn't hear anything," he informed me.

"Is it numb?" I was only a few feet from where he'd fallen.

"Definitely not numb," he chuckled ruefully.

"Can you move it?" I continued.

"Um, I'd rather not try."

"I need to know what I'm dealing with, Mulder," I explained. "Could you please just try?"

"Okay," he consented quietly.

I heard him take a couple of deep breaths. I held mine while I waited. When I heard his sudden sharp intake of breath, I finally breathed too.

"Christ!" his voice was tight.

I winced in sympathy. "So you can move it, but it hurts?" I wanted to make sure I'd interpreted what I'd heard correctly.

"Ya, it hurt like a bitch."

"Thank God," I exhaled sharply.

"You're glad it hurt? Thank you, Scully," he muttered.

"If you can move it, it's probably not broken," I explained, shaking my head to myself.

"Oh, I thought you'd developed sadistic tendencies all of a sudden."

I couldn't help laughing. The return of his sense of humor probably meant he wasn't hurt as badly as he thought he was. Now that I had a better idea about the extent of his injury, I had to figure out how to get him out of there. About thirty feet further down the slope I could see the gully opening up.

"Okay, I can see where the gully surfaces, Mulder. Can you?"

"No."

"Can you see where the water goes?"

"It just disappears into the dirt," he informed me.

"Shit," I muttered to myself. I fished my cell phone out of the zipped pocket of my jacket, hoping against all hope, but as I expected, I had no service. As I put it back into my pocket, I was once again reminded of Florida. This whole déjà vu thing was starting to piss me off. I got to my stomach and inched slowly toward the hole Mulder had created. "How far down are you?"

"Eight or nine feet, maybe," his voice was very close.

"Can you stand up?"

"That's something else I'd rather not try."

"I know you're hurting, Mulder," I tried to be patient with him. "But I'm not going to be able to get you out of there if you can't help me at all."

"What do you suggest?" For a change, he was the one that sounded skeptical.

"Well, before we try anything, do the sides of the hole look solid now?" I didn't want to end up falling in with him.

"Ya, it looks like this must be the source of a spring or something and the water eroded the soil away, just leaving a few inches at the surface," he explained.

"Okay, I'll try getting a little closer," I let him know what I was doing. "Let me know if the sides start to crumble at all."

"Okay," he agreed.

Ever so slowly, I began to inch my way toward the opening.

"Anything?" I called to him.

"Nope."

I was less than a foot away from the hole and my heart was pounding, knowing that if Mulder had misjudged at all, our situation would rapidly deteriorate. I doubted somehow that there were bodies down there to build a tower with.

"Stop!" Mulder's voice startled me and I froze instantly.

"Should I back up?" I kept my voice low.

"No, I think it's okay," he sounded calmer. "It was just some loose dirt, I guess. Do your hands reach the edge of the hole yet?"

"Yes," I stretched out my arms.

"Try pounding on the edge, to see if it's stable," he suggested.

I did as he requested, thumping the edges to see if they would give way. "Anything?" I asked again.

"A little bit, but nothing more than I'd expect if we'd dug this hole," he let me know.

"Okay," I exhaled slowly through pursed lips and crept to the edge of the cave-in.

Mulder was sitting on a rock on the opposite side of the sinkhole from me. He was completely covered in dirt and mud, but this was probably the cleanest goo he'd ever found himself covered in. His right leg was stretched out in front of him making it clear to me which ankle he'd injured.

"Hi," he smiled up at me forlornly.

"Hi," I couldn't help chuckling. "We should really talk about the way you throw yourself into your work."

"Ha ha," he didn't sound amused.

His estimate of eight or nine feet seemed about right, meaning if he could get to his feet and stretch his arms out, his hands wouldn't be that far from the top of the hole. I knew Mulder kept himself in good shape, so I was hoping he'd be able to use his upper body strength to help me get him out. I also needed something to use as a rope.

"Are you wearing a belt, Mulder?" I asked hopefully.

"Ya."

"Can I have it please?"

"If you want me naked, Scully, all you have to do is ask," he chuckled as he began to undo his belt.

"Maybe later," I rolled my eyes. Then I watched as he rolled the belt up.

"I'm not going to try to throw it to you," he explained. "I'm just going to throw it out of here."

"Okay," I nodded.

I knew he had a good arm, and much to my relief, his belt sailed over my head and landed with a thud a few feet behind me.

"Be right back," I smiled and slid backwards to start working on my makeshift rope.

After also removing my belt, I attached the two together, but it still wasn't enough length to reach him. My two best choices for making my rope longer were my jacket or my boot laces. Deciding that the laces would hold better, I quickly untied them and removed them from the d-rings and eyelets.

"How's it going?" Mulder called to me.

"Almost ready," I called back.

After tying the laces together, I tied one end to my wrist and tied the other to one of the belt buckles. It now looked more than long enough to reach him, so I took a deep breath and crawled back to the edge of the hole.

"So, here's what I'm thinking," I began when I could see him again. "Since you can't put weight on your right foot, I should be able to help steady you with this," I showed him my conglomeration.

"Okay," he nodded.

"But you are going to have to use your arms to pull yourself out," I cautioned him. "And don't put too much weight on this or you'll just pull me in, too."

"Okay," he seemed to be agreeing with everything I said, all of a sudden.

"Here goes nothing," I took a deep breath and tossed my handful of belts and shoelaces toward him.

He caught it on the first pass. After he wrapped the end of the belt around his hand, I began to back up until my rope was taut. Then I sat with my knees pulled up and the heels of my boots dug into the ground. Even though I'd removed the laces, I was still able to get a good purchase.

"Okay, see if you can pull yourself to your feet," I called.

"Okay, on three," he yelled back and began to count.

When he got to three I braced myself, holding the bootlace in both hands. I heard him grunt as he stood up. The lace dug into my skin as it grew tauter. I was worried that he might actually pull me to my feet, but he didn't; so far, so good. The tension slacked off now that he was upright.

"Can you tighten it up on your end now?" I asked. I had found some solid footing, and wanted to keep it.

"Yup," I felt it pull tight again. "Now I'm going to hop over to that side."

He must have been using the rope for balance, because it jerked a few times and then grew looser again as he got closer.

"Tightening again," he let me know.

"Okay."

Once the rope grew tight again, nothing happened for a minute and I became concerned.

"What's going on?" I asked anxiously.

"I'm trying to figure out the best plan of attack," he let me know.

"What are you considering?"

"Well, can you come a little bit closer?" he inquired tentatively.

"I could, but I was staying back to make sure you didn't pull me in, too," I explained.

"Ya, but if you were a little closer I could tie the belt around my chest. That way both of my hands will be free."

"Okay, well why don't you do that and we'll see where that puts me. Then we'll decide," I offered.

"Sure," he consented.

I took a couple of steps forward and waited as I felt him adjusting our rope. As it tightened I had to take another small step forward. There was less than three feet between me and the edge. I hoped it would be enough.

"I hope this works, Mulder, because if you fall backward, I'll end up in that hole with you," I warned him.

"This should work, Scully," he sounded confident. "If you could give me one good pull while I jump and try to grab the edge, I could hang on until you reset and then if you pull me while I try to pull myself up and scramble with my good leg," he explained his plan.

"I'll give it a go," I consented, deciding that this was not the time to say anything about the best laid plans.

"I'll need a little bit more slack so I can crouch," he informed me.

"Figure out what you need and then I'll get myself set."

"Okay," he told me after he'd pulled my upper body forward a few inches.

"Let me get my feet planted and then we'll go on three again, okay?"

"Yup, just let me know."

I dug my heels in again, but this time I wasn't sitting; I was squatting, leaning slightly forward with my arms outstretched. On three, I would step back and yank as hard as I could. I said a silent prayer that the rope would hold.

"Ready!"

"Okay, here we go," he called and I felt the rope grow taut. "One, two, three!"

The next thing I knew I was on my back and my rope felt slack. I thought my fear of the rope breaking had been realized, but when I sat up I saw Mulder trying to struggle out of the hole. I jumped to my feet and scrambled backwards, hauling him with me. When he was clear of the edge I collapsed to the ground. I lay there panting, almost in the fetal position, feeling like I might burst into tears at any instant. I always felt like this when a crisis was over and hated that I reacted this way. I took several long slow breaths to get myself back into control.

"Are you alright?" I was surprised to hear Mulder's voice right beside me. When I felt his hand on my arm, I was able to relax completely.

"Yeah," I chuckled and sat up. "I think I'm supposed to be asking you that question."

"Let's get you sorted out and then we can worry about me," he smiled softly and began to brush leaves out of my hair.

"I'm fine," I smiled at him, hoping to ease his concern. Instead he furrowed his brow slightly at me. I was about to ask why, when he spoke again.

"Can we at least undo our tether?"

"Right," I laughed, but when I went to undo the lace from my wrist, my smile quickly faded.

"Shit, Scully," Mulder picked up my wrist.

The lace had dug into me and my skin was abraded and bleeding slightly. I hadn't even noticed it. When Mulder began to loosen the knot, it started to sting. I drew in a quick breath between my teeth.

"Is it bad?" he looked concerned.

"That was just sensation returning," I forced a smile. I decided against telling him about the rope burns on my palms. His injury was far worse and I needed to be focussed on him. "Let me get my boots done up and then I'll have a look at your ankle," I said when we'd taken the rope apart.

"What's that going to involve?" he sounded leery.

"Are you asking me if it's going to hurt?" I looked up from relacing my boot.

"Ya."

"I'll try to be gentle, Mulder, but I can't promise you it's not going to hurt," I told him honestly.

"And you really need to look at it?" the color had begun to drain from his face.

"I'm sorry, but I do." The fact that he hadn't turned my previous words into anything sexual told me that his pain was more significant now than it had been earlier. "Did you end up using your right leg a bit to get out?" I stopped lacing my boot and put my hand on his knee.

"Ya," he grimaced.

Knowing that he was in pain made my stomach churn and I would've done everything in my power to ensure that nothing else hurt him, but I had no choice.

"That helps," he was now smiling at me.

Looking down, I discovered that I was gently caressing his leg.

"Enough that you can scoot back and lean against that tree?" I returned his smile.

"I can think of some things that would make me forget the pain completely," he was grinning unabashedly at me.

"Did I learn about them in med school when we were studying pain management?" I laughed as he complied with my request to lean up against a tree.

"Probably not," he was still grinning. "But maybe in sex ed, if you had a cool teacher."

"I went to Catholic school, Mulder," I reminded him as I finished with my boots.

"That's right," he chuckled. "Where keeping it out of the classroom means you learn by experimentation instead."

"Right," I shook my head. "Because public school kids never experiment." I began to push the leg of his jeans up toward his knee.

"We did," he agreed. "We just had more information backing us up."

"Ya, and learning about inserting tab 'a' into slot 'b' is so helpful," I smirked at him as I loosened the lace on his boot. I was happy that our banter seemed to be distracting him. That was something I _had_ learned as an intern.

"Okay, enough with the sexy talk, Scully," he chuckled.

"You're the one who brought up sex ed," I countered as I opened his boot up as much as I could. Even though I didn't have his boot or sock off yet, I could see that his ankle was very swollen and a contusion was already forming. Putting one hand on his calf to support his leg, I grasped the heel of his boot with the other and began to ease it off.

"Maybe you could tell me about how playing doctor inspired your career choice," he continued, although I could tell he was in pain by the tightness in his voice.

"How about my first anatomy lesson in the backseat of a car?" I offered, as I slipped the boot free.

"That works too," he tried to laugh, but I knew he was hurting.

"I still have to take your sock off," I warned him gently.

"How old were you?" his eyes were closed.

"What?"

"The anatomy lesson," he reminded me.

"Oh," I laughed as I began to peel off his sock. "17."

"You had your first anatomy lesson at 17?" his eyes opened in surprise.

"My first in the backseat of a car," I clarified. "There, it's off," I set his sock on top of his boot and began to look at his ankle closely.

Despite the bruising and swelling, it still looked like it was just sprained, but only an x-ray could tell me for sure. All I could tell at this point was that it wasn't an open fracture. That fact eased my mind tremendously. Knowing that he'd been able to use it a little while he was climbing out of the sinkhole was another indication that it probably wasn't broken, but people had been known to walk around on broken ankles. The most important thing right now was to try to reduce the swelling.

"How old was he?" Mulder interrupted my thoughts.

"Who?"

"Your anatomy teacher," he had recovered enough to be wearing a sly grin.

"I'll save that for the next time I need to distract you from your pain," I laughed. "I need to find something to elevate your foot," I explained as I stood up and began to look for fallen branches.

"But it still hurts," he protested.

"Uh huh," I ignored him and continued my search.

"It really does still hurt, Scully," he informed me when I returned with an armload of deadfall branches.

"This should help," I smiled at him as I arranged them lengthwise beside him. When I was done, I lifted his leg and gently placed it on the branches. "Better?"

"I liked it better when you were distracting me," he grumbled.

"Sorry," I put my hand on his elevated knee. "But that doesn't actually do anything to treat your injury."

"Touching me helps too," he covered my hand with his.

"And lots of people swear by the healing touch, Mulder, but I want to get that swelling down," I retrieved my hand and stood up. Mulder was such a suck when he was injured that his words could've been easily mistaken for deeper feelings. Luckily I'd learned to be on the lookout for that in med school, too.

"Ya, touching me definitely won't make the swelling go down," his sly grin had returned.

"And unfortunately, I think we may have to risk that water," I ignored his comment.

"Are you sure?" he wrinkled his nose. I hadn't realized how thoroughly I'd convinced him it was unsafe.

"Strangely enough, Mulder, the fact that it's running through that soil probably makes it safer. It acts kind of like a filter. Being close to the source helps, too," I explained. "It's not a hundred percent but we both have healthy immune systems."

"I'll trust your judgement," he'd become serious again.

"Okay, I'll be right back," I smiled and headed toward the gully opening.

When I reached it, I was surprised to discover how much water was flowing out of the ground. I'd been expecting a trickle, but it was a definite stream. The water Mulder had seen must have only been a fraction of what was feeding this freshet. As I filled my water bottle, I was thrilled to discover that it was icy cold. I'd be able to use it to make a cold compress. I decided quickly to use my t-shirt as the compress and pulled it over my head. When I stood to put my jacket back on, I heard Mulder's voice.

"That helps too!"

I was glad he was in a good mood. He hadn't seemed to notice that the woods were growing darker. There was no way I was going to walk an injured man down this slope in the dark. So here we were, once again, spending the night in the woods without the benefit of a sleeping bag. In future, I would have to remember not to tempt fate.

End chapter 3.


	4. Chapter 4

Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 4

Notes: Thanks again to Dan and Karen for beta reading. Also a special thanks to Charme for her unwavering honesty!

Yellow Creek, North Carolina

April 6, 1999

7:18 pm

Mulder eyed me warily when I when I returned with my dripping wet t-shirt.

"What are the chances that you're planning to put that back on, just to cheer me up?"

"It's for your ankle," I told him, although I'm sure he was well aware of that.

He grimaced in anticipation before the compress even touched him. "Shit, that's cold," he flinched when I carefully put it in place.

"Sorry, Mulder, but that _is_ the general idea," I told him as I adjusted the shirt to make sure his entire ankle was covered.

I knew there would be no good time to broach what was on my mind, so I just forged ahead.

"It's getting dark," I commented as I sat down next to him.

"I noticed that," he replied glumly.

I was expecting him to argue with me about staying put until daylight, but he said nothing. I didn't even have to say it out loud; he seemed to know implicitly. Mulder and I rarely had conversations when we agreed; only when we didn't. Although we did tend to know what the other was thinking, whether we agreed or not, tonight was no different. We remained quiet for a few minutes. I was surprised when Mulder reached out for my hand. I was more surprised by how icy it was.

"Cold?" I asked him.

"A bit," he nodded.

Keeping his hand in mine, I moved so that I was pressed against him. "Better?"

"A little," he shrugged. "C'mere," he released my hand and lifted his arm, inviting me to lean against his chest.

As soon as I leaned in, he wrapped his arm around me and pulled me even closer.

"That's better," he sighed

I, too, thought it was an improvement, but for a completely different reason. I didn't even care that he was covered in dirt and drying mud. I silently chastised myself for revelling in the contact between us when I should've been concerned about his well-being.

"How about I light a fire?" I suggested.

"I'd rather you spent your time rubbing me than rubbing two sticks together," he didn't release his hold on me.

"Then I'll use the matches I brought, instead," I pulled back to see his reaction.

"You have matches?" he was shocked.

"I saw them at the hotel and thought I should pick them up," I shrugged.

"I didn't see matches in my room," he sounded puzzled.

"They were in the lobby," I let him know. "An ad for a local bar, I guess."

"Were you planning to go out drinking?" he chuckled.

"Ya, you know me," I laughed, "Can't keep me away."

"Why did you pick them up?"

"I dunno, I just thought I should," I told him as I moved to get up. His eyes followed me as I moved. "Too bad there were no sleeping bags."

I gathered up what I would need to get the fire started and once it was going, I gathered more and brought it to Mulder. Leaving him to keep it going, I gathered wood until it was too dark to see, always making sure I could still see the fire.

"How's your ankle doing?" I asked when I got back, lifting the drying compress off of his leg.

"Hurts less," he let me know.

We were quiet for a minute as I tidied up the wood I'd gathered.

"I'm sorry, Scully," Mulder blurted out.

"Sorry?" I looked at him in confusion.

"Sorry for making you spend another night with me in the woods," he clarified.

"It's hardly your fault," I assured him as I sat down beside him. "How could you have known that sinkhole was there?"

"Ya, but I dragged you up here, when you didn't really think there was a case."

"If you owed me an apology every time you dragged me somewhere I didn't think there was a case...," I laughed.

"But I am normally right about the cases," he continued.

"I don't usually disagree with you about the validity of the cases, Mulder," I clarified. "We usually disagree on how to interpret what we discover in the course of our investigation.

"So what about this case?" he prompted me.

"I'm here because you asked to come with you, not because I think there's a case here," I was honest with him, "Aside from the fraud," I added.

"What if I can prove it to you?" he pressed on.

"Your idea of proof and mine are miles apart, Mulder," I shook my head. "Let's say that fairies are real."

"Okay," he looked at me sideways, not sure where I was going.

"What do all of the legends say about them?" I ploughed ahead. "They're secretive, they only show themselves when they want to and they live across the veil."

"Across the veil?"

"In another dimension," I explained.

"So?" he wasn't following me.

"So if they are real, you're hardly going to be able to catch one and put it in a glass jar like a fire fly," I spelled it out for him.

"You seem to know a lot about fairies," he grinned at me.

"I _was _a little girl once, Mulder, with a little girl imagination. And I liked to read – a lot," I pointed out. "Are there any other mythical beings or creatures from Irish folklore you'd like to know about?"

"Well, I'm certainly not going to ask you to sing again, so maybe a story is a good idea," he joked, but at the same time I felt a shiver run through him.

"Are you still cold?" I was surprised. The fire was burning brightly and I could feel the heat radiating from it.

"I can feel the fire, but it doesn't seem to be warming me up," he confessed.

I immediately recognized his description as mild shock. His sprain must have been affecting him more than I'd realized. The fact that he'd struggled out of the sinkhole with a bad ankle probably hadn't helped.

"Did you hurt anything besides your ankle when you fell?" I wanted to make sure I hadn't missed anything.

"You mean aside from my pride?" he chuckled.

"Ya," I smiled. "Did you hit your head, too, or maybe land heavily on your side?"

"Nope, I landed on my feet, but my right foot came down on a rock. Then I fell over onto my ass," he informed me dryly. "Why?"

"Just checking," I shrugged. "Let me take a look at your ankle again."

The fire was casting enough light for me to see that the contusion had darkened, but I was happy to see that the swelling had gone down. It was still swollen, but elevating his leg and the cold compress had obviously helped.

"Is your foot cold?" I put my hand carefully on his instep.

"No more than the rest of me," he told me quietly.

I was pleased to feel that it was just cool, not cold. That meant his circulation hadn't been compromised. His injury didn't seem that severe. Perhaps it was just that being outside on a cool spring night wasn't helping.

"Let me stoke up the fire and then I'll see if I can warm you up," I tried to sound cheerful.

"Okay," he nodded. I was waiting for more innuendo, but he surprised me by saying nothing else.

Once I'd put enough fuel on the fire to keep it going for what I hoped was a long time, I set my watch to alarm in two hours and then turned to face Mulder.

"Can you scoot forward a bit? I'll sit behind you," I told him.

"Why behind me?" he looked puzzled.

"To keep you warm I need as much contact as possible," I explained. "But I still want your foot elevated, so I think this is the best way."

"You just want to snuggle," his slight sly smile wasn't up to his usual standards, but I was glad to see that his sense of humor had returned. "Admit it."

"You found me out, Mulder," I raised my hands in defeat. "But since you dragged me out here, I think the least you can do is grant me this one small thing," I played along.

"If I must," he rolled his eyes and began to inch forward.

When there was enough room, I slid down between him and the tree.

"This isn't very comfortable," he complained.

He was sitting completely upright and because of our height difference, he had nowhere to put his head.

"Push your footrest forward, move your butt forward and then lean back against me," I instructed.

The pile of branches was awkward for him to move, so I got up and adjusted it for him. When I sat down again, Mulder leaned back against me immediately.

"Mmm, much better," he sighed contentedly.

His head was now resting just below my shoulder. I put my arms around his waist and pulled my legs in so they were touching him. The trunk of tree didn't make a very good back rest, but I'd been in far more uncomfortable positions in the past, so I said nothing.

When he first leaned back, I could feel the tension in Mulder's body, but the longer we were in contact, the more he relaxed. I was about to ask him if he was feeling warmer when he began to snore softly. I leaned my head back against the tree and closed my eyes, hoping I'd be able to sleep a little as well.

The next thing I knew, the beeping of my alarm was waking me up. It was 11:15. I roused Mulder, who grudgingly sat up while I put more wood on the fire. The wood I'd put on earlier hadn't completely burned away, so I figured that if I put a bit more on, it should last at least three hours. After setting my watch accordingly, I sat back down. Mulder leaned back against me right away, snuggling into me at the same time.

"Comfortable?" I chuckled.

"Mmm hmm," he nodded, sleepily.

"Are you feeling any warmer?" I asked as I wrapped my arms around him again.

"Mmm," he mumbled non-committally.

I was going to ask him again until he put his hands on top of mine. They felt warmer than mine did. This time I fell asleep more quickly.

When I woke next, the morning sun was filtering softly through the spring leaves in the canopy above us. I couldn't believe that I'd been able to sleep soundly enough that the alarm on my watch hadn't been able to wake me. Our fire was just a bed of embers, but I could still feel the heat emanating off of them. At some point during the night, Mulder had taken his leg off of the branches, but he was still leaning against me, breathing softly. I wanted to check my watch, but he was holding our hands atop his stomach and I didn't want to disturb him.

All of our discussions about fairies had led me to some interesting dreams. I'd dreamt that they had visited our fire and danced around it while we were sleeping. When the sun began to rise, the fairies began to wander off in search of a trillium to curl up in. I smiled at how my unconscious mind had incorporated all of the trilliums I'd seen the day before into my thoughts about the Sidhe.

I was hoping to leave Mulder until he woke on his own, but eventually my bladder could wait no more and I had to wake him.

When I got back to the fire, Mulder began to laugh at me.

"What?" I frowned at him.

"I guess I didn't notice last night because it was too dark, but you've got mud on your face," he was still chuckling.

"Where?" I began to brush at myself.

"C'mere," he patted the ground beside him. "I'll do it."

So I knelt down in front of him and closed my eyes as he wiped at my nose.

"Hmm," his tone was puzzled.

"What?" I opened my eyes.

"It's not coming off," he furrowed his brow, licked his thumb and tried again.

"Really, Mulder? You're spit cleaning me? I do have a bottle of water," I groused at him.

"It's not coming off," he ignored my complaint. He leaned in closer to peer at my nose. "It's not dirt. It looks like some of your freckles got darker. Did you get too much sun, yesterday?"

"It must be your imagination," I shook my head. "I didn't get that much sun."

"I know what your freckles look like, Scully. They are definitely darker," he ran his fingers gently over my nose as he spoke. My eyelids fluttered closed at the sensation. "Maybe more sun got through the trees than you realized," he suggested.

"Maybe," I shrugged and leaned away from him. "Let me have a look at that ankle."

Even though the bruising looked much worse, the swelling had definitely abated and I was able to get his sock and boot back on with little reaction from him. Then I found him a sturdy branch to use as a crutch and helped him to his feet. He wanted to hobble off alone to relieve himself, which led to a fight about me helping him until he tried to take his first step. I hadn't been able to convince him to drink any of the water, so I was surprised that he had to pee at all.

Once I'd completely doused the embers, we began our trek down the mountain. It was 7 a.m. Despite Mulder's injury, we made fairly rapid progress and in an hour I could see the road through the thinning trees.

"A lot faster on the way down," Mulder commented.

"A lot!" I agreed emphatically. Too much faster, I thought, and found out why when we stepped out onto the shoulder of the road. We were nowhere near the car. It was about a half mile east of where we were standing.

"What the -?" Mulder squinted in the early morning sunshine.

"What was that you were saying about being able to see the trail?" I laughed.

"But we walked back east for a bit before we started down the mountain again," he looked completely confused.

"I realize that, Mulder," I patted his arm in sympathy.

"We couldn't have walked that far west. We were going straight up." I wasn't sure who he was trying to convince.

"The mountain is covered with swells. We probably thought we were going straight when we weren't," I tried to appease him.

"Mmm," he sounded unconvinced. He hopped around to peer back into the trees.

"Wait here, I'll get the car," I told him, but he barely acknowledged that I had spoken. He was too busy trying to figure out how he'd gone so far off course.

He was still standing looking at the mountainside when I got back with the car. He was so lost in thought that he let me help him into the car, never once insisting that he could do it himself.

"I think something else was going on," he looked at me when I got back into the car.

"What do you mean?" I asked as I pulled a u-turn to head back to Bryson City.

"I know my way around the woods, Scully, and I would've noticed if we were going sideways as opposed to straight uphill," he insisted.

"Yes, but with all the swells -," I began to repeat what I'd said earlier.

"What, swells that only led us in one direction?" he didn't let me finish. "I don't disagree that the uneven ground may have altered our course a bit, but it should have led us in both directions, and basically averaged out, not skewed us to the west completely," he argued.

"I guess," I agreed, "So what do you think happened then?" I asked, not sure I wanted to hear his answer.

"Well, remember last night when you were talking about what fairies are known for?"

"Ya," I replied hesitantly.

"You missed one thing."

"That they're tricksters," I knew exactly what he was thinking.

"Yup."

"So you find it easier to believe that fairies tricked us into going off course than the possibility that you couldn't actually see the trail that Ted Johnson pointed out?" I was incredulous.

"Not that I couldn't see the trail," he argued defensively. "That we spent so much time walking west without noticing."

"And how exactly did the fairies accomplish that?" I looked at him askance. I knew if I mentioned that when we got back from our bathroom break, I'd thought we weren't in the same place we'd left, it only would've added to his conviction, so I kept that to myself.

"They are also known for they're ability to cloud perception," he said matter-of-factly.

"Ya, I put the clouding perception myth down to a few too many pints of Guinness," I chuckled.

"Why is it so hard for you to accept that these legends might have a basis in fact?" he didn't even crack a smile at my joke.

"Mulder," I sighed. "I explained yesterday what I thought about tricksters, but if you'd really like to know what I think, it's that legends like this arise when people are looking for ways to explain phenomena they don't understand."

"But it's okay to believe when the explanation for the phenomena is God," he threw it back at me.

I couldn't argue that it was different, because it wasn't. I didn't know how to explain my beliefs to him. We'd had this debate many times, with neither of us budging an inch. I didn't want to rehash it all.

"I guess that's where faith comes in," I shrugged. "My faith allows me to believe it."

He said nothing. I'd always ended this debate the same way. I knew it pissed him off that this was the one thing I could accept without direct evidence, but I couldn't change the way I felt. We drove on in silence until I pulled into a diner when we were almost back to Bryson City.

"Hungry?" I asked.

"Ya," he answered quietly.

He let me help him inside, but he said nothing more except to the waitress who took our order. She'd made no comment about Mulder's crutch. Luckily he'd left his filthy sweatshirt in the car. If she'd noticed that his jeans were covered in dirt, she'd chosen not to comment about that either.

"How long are you going to be mad at me?" I asked once she was out of earshot.

"I'm not mad," he took a sip of his coffee.

"Then why aren't you talking to me?"

"Nothing to say, I guess," he shrugged.

"So because I don't agree with you about this, we aren't going to talk anymore?" I raised my eyebrows at him.

"You're the one who shut the conversation down, Scully," he told me bluntly.

"Mulder, you and I are never going to agree about my beliefs. I don't see how debating the subject ad infinitum is going to solve anything," I explained myself. "It's something I rarely discuss with anyone, never mind debating it."

"You want to debate my beliefs all the time," he pointed out. "You won't accept what I believe without proof, but you expect me to accept yours with none."

"Hang on a second," I lowered my voice. "I never said I expected you to accept my beliefs. What I do expect, is that you'll respect my choice to believe in God."

"So, you want me to respect your choice when you do nothing but scoff at mine?" his voice rose. Several heads turned to look at us.

I felt my cheeks growing hot. It wasn't just that we were attracting attention; I realized he was right.

"You're right, Mulder," I admitted quietly, hoping people would stop looking our way.

"I'm right?" he straightened up in surprise.

"Yes, even if I don't believe in the same things you do, I shouldn't mock them. You should've said something sooner. I'm sorry," I apologized earnestly.

"I'm right?" he repeated with a grin.

"Yes, Mulder," I had to chuckle, relieved that the tension between us had suddenly dissipated.

To my surprise, Mulder didn't mention the subject again. Instead we began to talk about our plans for after breakfast. He'd wanted to go back to the hotel for a shower, but didn't argue much when I insisted on taking him straight to the hospital. I didn't think it was the best time to mention that I was going to insist on a bath instead of a shower, either. He wanted to head back out to Yellow Creek when we'd cleaned up, but I asked him to wait until he'd had an x-ray and then we'd decide. I knew the doctor would want him to rest, which was what I wanted. Maybe the two of us would be able to convince him.

It was a short drive from the diner to the Swain County Hospital. Once inside, our badges got us prompt attention and when Mulder was wheeled into x-ray, I went in search of a bathroom. I wanted to have a look at my new darker freckles. I was surprised when I flicked on the light in the bathroom to discover that, once again, Mulder was right. It did look like I had a sprinkling of darker freckles on my nose. I decided to wash my face in the hope that soap might work better to get it off than saliva, if it was actually dirt. Not wanting to get my jacket wet when I washed my face, I began to unzip it. The zipper was about halfway down when my heart fell. My hand went to my neck instinctively, but my fingers felt what the mirror had already reflected – nothing.

My necklace was gone.

End chapter 4


	5. Chapter 5

Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 5

Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 5

Bryson City, NC

April 7th, 1999

10:23 am

I must have stood staring at the empty spot just below the hollow at the base of my throat for at least a minute. That cross, the one my mother had given me on my fifteenth birthday, had been hanging around my neck for the last 20 years. I'd worn it almost every day since then. I'd lost it once before. In reality, it was me that had been lost. Mulder had kept my necklace safe for me until I was returned. I didn't feel quite right knowing it wasn't there. I almost felt naked.

After I shook myself out of my reverie, I checked my bra and the floor. Then I took my jacket off and checked it, inside and out, but found nothing. I could think of two places where I might have lost it; near the sinkhole when I was helping Mulder or at the stream when I'd taken my t-shirt off to use as a cold compress for his ankle. There was no way to find it now, unless I went back to the mountainside with a metal detector. I shook my head, heaved a sigh and proceeded to wash my face.

The industrial strength soap in the dispenser in the hospital bathroom worked no better than Mulder's saliva at removing the specks from my nose. So, in addition to losing my necklace, I had gained some darker freckles. Florida was quickly becoming a fond memory.

When I got back to Mulder's exam room it was still empty. I considered calling Skinner, but I decided to wait until we had the results of the x-ray. I didn't want to tell him that Mulder had sprained his ankle, only to find out in half an hour that it was, in fact, broken. Skinner was not going to be thrilled that one of us was injured again. It made me wonder if he ever got called onto the carpet to explain everything that had happened to Mulder and me. I'm sure he must have, but that was something Mulder and I never took into consideration when we were investigating a case.

I was trying to figure out how to break the news about my necklace to my mother when an orderly wheeled a very pale looking Mulder back into the room. I helped the young man get Mulder back up onto the table, but I said nothing until he was gone.

"What happened?" I picked up his hand. "Are you okay?"

"Remember when I asked you if you'd developed sadistic tendencies?" he raised his eyebrows at me.

"Ya?" I furrowed my brow, not sure where he was going.

"You don't hold a candle to the woman who just took the x-rays," he shook his head.

"Mulder, she had to move your ankle into specific positions so the films would show all of the ankle bones. The ankle has 26 bones and every one has to be visible," I explained.

"I wish you'd come with me," he squeezed my hand.

"They tend to discourage visitors," I chuckled, "Except for children."

Mulder said nothing and I was surprised to see that he still looked pale.

"Why don't you lie down?" I suggested. "You don't look so good."

"Thanks," he rolled his eyes at me.

"C'mon," I helped him turn and lie back. "It'll make you feel better."

"It really hurt a lot," he insisted through ashen lips.

"I believe you," I assured him as I began to play with his hair. I knew it helped him to relax. I couldn't help smiling when his eyelids began to close. "Don't think about your ankle. Focus on my hand," I told him gently.

"Already am," he murmured. "Could you lean a little closer?"

"Okay," I did as he asked.

"A little more, please."

I leaned even closer as I gently stroked his hair. "Is this better?"

"Mmm hmm," he sighed.

"Why?" I couldn't figure out what was making it better.

"I like the way your breasts are pressing against my arm," he sighed again.

I straightened up and was about to give him a piece of my mind when I was startled by a voice behind me.

"Hello again, Mr. Mulder."

I turned around to see the doctor holding a package of x-rays. Dr. Gunn was an older man with white hair and a friendly smile. It was almost as if he'd been plucked out of a Norman Rockwell painting and plunked down in front of us.

"Mrs. Mulder," he nodded at me. Before I could correct him, he began to speak as he pulled the x-rays out of the envelope. Mulder just grinned, no longer looking quite so wan. "Let's take a look at what we've got. I'm hoping it's just a sprain," he smiled at me as he began to slide the films under the clips on the light box.

"Do you have a light box in every exam room?" I was surprised to see it. They were usually set up in corridors.

"In the rooms where we put possible fractures," he nodded. "We get more than our fair share of broken bones here because of all of the hikers."

I nodded, but I was looking at Mulder's films. "There's no fracture of the medial, anterior or posterior malleolus," I was talking mostly to myself. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Dr. Gunn looking at me.

"Sorry," I stepped back. "I'm a doctor; force of habit."

"No, problem," he smiled. "And I agree. Your husband's ankle doesn't appear to be broken."

"My partner," I corrected him with a smile.

"I don't know what you young people have against marriage," he shook his head.

"We're F.B.I. agents, Dr. Gunn. Mulder is my partner," I explained.

"Oh," he looked a little taken aback. "But when I -," his forehead wrinkled. "Never mind," he shook his head and turned toward Mulder. "It just looks like a bad sprain, Mr. Mulder. We'll wrap it up and get you some crutches, but you'll need to keep your leg up for a while, and keep icing it."

"How long is a while?" Mulder looked annoyed.

"A couple of days, at least," Dr. Gunn said firmly.

"I'll make sure he stays off it," I assured the doctor. "And if you'll get me a bandage, I'll wrap it."

"A couple of days, Scully?" Mulder began to whine before the doctor had left the room. "What about the case?"

"Today you shouldn't do anything, but I could call Ted Johnson and see if we can reschedule our dark room tour for tomorrow. I don't think that will be too strenuous. Friday, if your ankle isn't looking any better, we should head home for the weekend. If it has improved, maybe you could hobble around on your crutches, okay?"

"Do I get a say," he sounded petulant.

"No," I shook my head.

Even with me wrapping Mulder's ankle, it still took another hour before we were done. The hospital seemed to like paperwork as much as the Bureau did. Luckily the hotel had an elevator, so Mulder didn't have to negotiate stairs with his crutches.

"I'll get a bath ready for you," I smiled once we were in his room.

"I'm not really a bath kinda guy," he chuckled. "I'll have a shower."

"You're a bath kinda guy until that ankle is better," I told him; my hands firmly planted on my hips.

He took a breath to argue with me, but I cut him off before he got going. "You want to hop around on one foot in a slippery shower? I don't think so. I don't want to be treating a concussion, too."

"Fine," he agreed with a sigh.

"Get undressed and I'll see if the hotel has a laundry service, if not I'll look for a Laundromat later," I told him as I went to the bathroom to fill the tub.

When I got back Mulder was waiting in his boxers. I did my best not to notice. I knew his feelings for me were strictly platonic, but seeing him next to naked, even with the crutches, made me wish things could be different. My lust didn't make me feel very good about myself. My partner was injured and here I was thinking about how good he looked nude, or almost.

"C'mon," I nodded toward the bathroom. "Once I get you in the tub, I'll go grab a quick shower and then I'll help you get out."

He didn't move. He stood there on his crutches staring at me.

"Hurry up," I sighed impatiently. "I'd really like to have my shower and get into some clean clothes."

"I can get in on my own," he informed me as he began to make his way toward the bathroom.

"How, exactly?" I tilted my head at him.

"I'll figure it out," he insisted.

"Mulder," I shook my head. "What is the problem? I am trying to help you out here _and _prevent further injury. Will you please stop being so stubborn!"

"Scully," he whined.

"Are you worried about me seeing you naked?" I was incredulous. "I've seen you naked before," I reminded him. "So you have nothing to be modest about, okay?"

"Easy for you to say," he grumped. "You're not the one who has to be naked."

"You've seen me naked before and more often then I've seen you," I reminded him.

"It'd be nice if I could see you naked some time when you weren't sick or injured or worse," he muttered as he hobbled past me.

"I wasn't any of those things in the decontam shower," I pointed out with a smirk.

"Okay, so without a bunch of other people who are holding scrub brushes, too."

"Sit on the edge of the tub and I'll unwrap your foot," I chuckled. "Once you're out of the bath, I'll order us some room service and we can have a quiet afternoon, alright?" I tried to placate him.

"You'll keep me company?" his mood brightened.

"Of course, I will. Now stand up and take of your boxers. Then I'll help you into the tub," I tried to hurry him up. I was enjoying this far more than I should've been.

"Aren't you going to help me with these, too?" he lowered his voice as he stood up on one leg.

"First you're worried about me seeing you naked and now you want me to strip you? Would you make up your mind, please," I shook my head.

"Scully, the reason I was hesitant before and the reason I want you to strip me now are one and the same."

His voice suddenly seemed even deeper to me. I had been trying not to meet his eyes in case some of what I was feeling might be showing in mine, but now I was confused. I needed to see what _he_ was feeling. When I lifted my eyes up to meet his, I was so stunned my breath caught in my throat. His hazel eyes had grown darker and his pupils were dilated. My heart started to pound in my chest, but the rest of me was frozen in anticipation. I couldn't move and my vocals cords seemed to have stopped functioning.

"C'mere," he slipped one arm around my waist.

I don't remember taking a step, but I was suddenly pressed up against him. His mouth was descending toward mine, his erection was pushing into my belly and he'd woven his free hand into my hair. As soon as his lips touched mine I regained my voice and moaned into his mouth. It must have been the sign he was waiting for, because he began to gently explore my mouth with his tongue. His hand left my hair and travelled down to my breast. I sighed my approval into his mouth but was surprised when he lifted his lips away from mine.

"You have too many clothes on," he answered the question he must have seen in my eyes.

"I do," I agreed breathily and stripped off quickly. I wanted to minimize the time I wasn't touching him. "Better?" I asked as I stepped back into his arms.

"Much," he nodded as he lowered his lips to mine.

As we kissed, his hand closed over my breast, sending a surge of heat to my core. My hands were exploring his back and when I reached the waistband of his boxers I began to push them down, but as soon as I felt his ass, I had to stop and explore that, too.

"Scully?" Mulder pulled out of our kiss.

"Mmm?" I tried to pull him back. He dipped his head briefly to accommodate me, but pulled away again. "What?" I whispered.

"As much as I would love to make love to you right here, I think we both might find the bed more comfortable," he grinned at me.

"Sorry, Mulder," I laughed and handed him the crutches. "And I'll get rid of these," I pulled his boxers down. He balanced completely on the crutches as I slipped them over his good foot.

As soon as they were off he crutched his way quickly into the other room.

"You know we shouldn't be doing this," I reminded him as he settled against the headboard.

"I won't tell, if you don't," he chuckled as he reached for my hand.

"Cross my heart," I smiled as I straddled his legs.

"So beautiful," he whispered and took my face in his hands.

I collapsed against him as his tongue delved into my mouth again. There were so many questions I wanted to ask him, but I wasn't about to stop and ask. I had been so sure that Mulder only thought of me as a friend in spite of everything he'd said to me. Why had I found it so hard to believe him? It was a question I would have to ponder another time. It was time to stop over-thinking. It was time to lose myself in him.

His hands left my face and moved to my breasts. I groaned into his mouth as he teased my nipples with his thumbs. I couldn't keep my hips still and he grunted when I rocked against him. Our lips finally parted as I lifted myself to get his cock completely between my legs. My plan went awry when my breasts neared Mulder's mouth. He slid one hand under my ass to hold me up as his mouth closed around me.

"Oh god," I breathed and grasped the headboard.

"Mmm," he rumbled his approval, sending delicious vibrations through my breast.

If I'd merely wanted him inside of me when I'd lifted myself up; now I was aching for him. I could feel how wet I'd become and if he didn't hurry up, I was going to embarrass myself by having an orgasm simply from the way his tongue was teasing my nipple.

"Mulder, please," I panted.

"What?" he asked without releasing my breast.

"I want you inside of me," I confessed breathlessly.

"Aren't you enjoying this?" he finally moved his mouth.

"Oh god, yes, Mulder, I am so close. I need you inside of me," my breathing was labored.

His eyes widened and darkened at my admission. He reached for his cock immediately and held it while I lowered myself. His eyes dropped and I realized he wanted to watch himself disappear into me. I did the same. We both groaned when the head of his cock made contact with me.

"Jesus, Scully," his voice was tight. "You feel so good."

"Oh god," I groaned again as he slid into me. I knew it wasn't going to take much to make me come.

As I began to move slowly, his hands skimmed along my sides and back to my breasts. My eyes rolled back when his fingers closed around my nipples. I kept my pace slow, exaggerating the contact between us on each stroke, but I still seemed to be unable to catch my breath. I was so dizzy with desire I had to put my hands on his shoulders to keep my balance.

"Look at me, Scully," Mulder's raspy tone made me shiver.

When I forced my eyes open, I found his eyes blazing up at me. His full lips were parted as he, too, struggled for breath.

"Oh, Mulder," I gasped.

The intensity I saw in his face astounded me. I was so close, my entire body was trembling. Seeing his passion sent another rush of heat to my core. Every inch of me was on fire. I could no longer keep my pace slow.

As soon as I began to move more quickly, Mulder dropped his hands to my hips. He began to lift his hips, thrusting into me, matching my every stroke. My eyes drifted closed again as I concentrated on the bliss that was intensifying within me. I was sure that as soon as I sped up, my orgasm would explode through me, but the white heat inside of me only increased. My body became taut as the pressure continued to build. I felt like I was about to fly to pieces. Beneath me, I felt Mulder begin to quake. I opened my eyes again to find his face contorted in ecstasy. That sight sent a final surge through me. Everything that had been building inside of me shattered, sending wave after wave of electric shocks through me.

As my body quaked above him, Mulder held my hips firmly. We locked eyes as we shuddered together. I could feel Mulder pulsing inside of me as I throbbed against him.

"Scully," he groaned as yet another wave shook me.

I collapsed against him, exhausted, even though my body continued to quiver.

"Kiss me," he lifted my chin.

I pressed my lips to his and kissed him gently. I was mildly surprised when Mulder rolled me to my back and deepened our kiss. As we kissed, we let our hands explore. His lips left mine and he gently kissed my nose, my eyelids, my cheeks and my chin. I was content to relish in his attention. When he stopped kissing me, I opened my eyes to see what he doing. I found him looking down at me, his eyes once again ablaze with emotion.

"Do you believe me now, Scully? Do you believe that I love you?"

End chapter 5


	6. Chapter 6

Title: Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 6

Author: Andrea

Rating: NC-17

Category: X-File, MSR, Mulder POV

Disclaimer: Mulder and Scully aren't mine, but everyone else is.

Notes: Thanks to Dan, Mimic and Karen for beta reading.

Spoilers: thru season 6.

Feedback: Please!

Bryson City, NC

April 7th, 1999

12:45 pm

I could barely believe what had just happened. In the blink of an eye something changed. I'm not sure what I did or said, but whatever it was resulted in Scully stepping into my arms when I asked. It never occurred to me that she might accept when I opened my arms to her. Sure we'd hugged before, but never when I was only in my boxers. We'd almost kissed before, but the mood had been entirely different. This time as I was lowering my mouth to hers, I didn't see a question in her eyes. I thought I actually saw an answer.

When she moaned into my mouth, my entire world changed. I was no longer one sorry son-of-a-bitch. I'd become the luckiest man on the face of the earth and at that point, I still didn't have a clue what was in store for me. It wasn't just how incredible it felt to be inside of her. It wasn't even the look of pure bliss on her face; although knowing that I played a part in bringing her to that level of ecstasy worked wonders on my self-esteem.

What amazed me was what I saw in her eyes as she moved above me. Was it love, like I was hoping with all of my heart? Had it always been there? Did something happen to make her finally believe me? I needed to know. The reaction I got when I asked her was miles away from what I'd been expecting.

Her blue eyes were suddenly swimming with unshed tears. "I'm sorry, Mulder." Her tears began to slide out of the corners of her eyes and run along her temples into her hair.

I thought I'd finally proven to her how much I loved her and she was lying beneath me, crying. My dismay must have been written on my face because she choked out a laugh as her hand went to my face.

"I'm sorry I didn't believe you." She gave me a wobbly smile.

"But now you do?" I wanted to be sure.

"I do." Her smile became radiant. Her eyes shone up at me. There were no longer any tears involved. She slid her hand to the back of my neck and pulled me into another kiss. "I do," she murmured against my lips.

I desperately wanted to know what had changed her mind; why she suddenly believed me. But I strongly doubted this was the time to pepper her with questions. Instead, I returned her kisses wholeheartedly.

"I'm really enjoying this, Mulder," she told me breathily when I moved my lips to her neck.

I heard it in her voice. "But?" I lifted my head to look at her.

"I'd really like to have a bath and you need one, too. You still have mud in your hair," she chuckled.

"Okay." I heaved a sigh.

"I could join you." She smiled up at me, her blue eyes sparkling.

"Baths may be moving up on my list." I kissed her smiling lips. "In fact, anything where we're alone, wet and naked would be at the top of my list."

Scully and I had been alone before. We'd been wet on more than one occasion. She'd seen me wet and naked, just as I'd seen her. We were even wet and naked together once, but we'd had company. I was definitely alright with alone, wet and naked.

While I hobbled to the bathroom, Scully threw on a robe and dashed across the hall to grab her bath stuff. I only ever brought my shaving kit. The soap and shampoo the motel provided had always been fine with me.

Once we were in the tub Scully started by washing my hair and then she washed hers. I probably could've washed my own hair under the faucet in the tub, but there is something decidedly hedonistic about having a naked woman washing your hair. When you're hopelessly in love with that naked woman, hedonistic seems like a meek descriptor. It was pure, unadulterated bliss.

By the time she finished with our hair, I had my second wind. It was something that did not go unnoticed by a trained investigator like Scully.

"Mmm." She smiled at me as her hand closed around my shaft.

I couldn't help groaning.

"Sit here." She patted the back edge of the tub. "Do you need help?"

"Nope." I shook my head as I put my palms on the side and lifted myself up. All the dips I'd done at the gym were coming in handy. I didn't question her request. I knew only good things were about to follow, despite how cold the tub was on my ass.

It has been said that there are only two things you can be sure of in life; death and taxes. I think whoever coined that adage was probably too prudish to include a third thing you can be damn sure of; men love blowjobs.

I'd never had a bad blowjob, but some had definitely stood out more than others. The instant Scully's lips touched my cock, they all paled in comparison.

Whenever I'd fantasized about this scenario, and I fantasized about it a lot, it was almost always 'Work Scully' who was wrapping her lips around my penis. She'd be kneeling in front of me with her perfect hair, the blue of her eyes accentuated by some expertly chosen shade of eye shadow and her perfect mouth, made more luscious by her lipstick.

'Work Scully' would never appear in a single fantasy of mine again.

The Scully who was kneeling in front of me now was bare and I don't mean naked, although she was that too. Her hair was wet and she'd raked it away from her face. Her face was completely devoid of make-up, but I'd never seen her skin look more radiant. Her cheeks were pink against her luminous skin making her new freckles look even darker. Her lips looked fuller than I can ever remember and their natural light rose color matched her cheeks.

This was Real Scully and her lips felt infinitely better than those of the Scully who appeared in my fantasies.

Scully's mouth was something poets would write about, balladeers would sing about and bards would weave spell-binding tales about. This was by far the best blowjob ever and all she'd done so far was kiss the head of my penis.

When she took me completely in, echoes of my groan filled the bathroom. Even with me in her mouth, I could see her smiling in satisfaction. When she looked up at me with her sparkling blue eyes, I groaned even louder. Maybe it makes me a bad person, but I love it when a woman looks up at me like that. This, however, was like nothing I'd ever felt before.

It must have been because this was Scully with my cock in her mouth, her hot little tongue dancing along my shaft, looking up at me with her dazzling blue eyes. Something in my belly surged, my glutes clenched and my balls tightened. I was on the verge of coming and we'd barely gotten started

Scully's eyes widened at my reaction. Her hand went to my balls and she began to gently caress them as she let my cock slowly slide out of her mouth.

"Too much?"

"Mmm." I nodded, my eyes still glued to her as she placed little kisses along my shaft.

"What was too much?" She asked innocently.

"Nnn." I shook my head.

"Tell me, Mulder." I felt her hot breath against me. "How can I do it right if you won't tell me?"

"Oh, Scully," I breathed shakily. "You're doing it more than right."

"Mulder." She paused for effect, taking the head of my cock into her mouth again. She swirled her tongue over me and then applied the gentlest amount of suction as she pulled her mouth off. It created a slurping noise that made me shiver in delight. "It might have escaped you, but I'm holding all the power right now, so I suggest you answer my question."

"Scully, please," I begged her.

"Tell me, Mulder." She was trying to look stern, but the corners of her mouth twitched with a smile.

"Can't explain it." I shook my head. I was worried that she might be pissed off if I told her the real reason I'd enjoyed it so much.

"Then I guess I'll have to figure it out on my own." She held my cock firmly in her hand. Her eyes were sparkling again and she smiled.

None of this seemed bad to me. "Kay." I bobbed my head up and down in approval.

"Let me try this." She pushed my erection against my abdomen. Then starting at my balls, she ran the flat of her tongue along my penis until she reached the tip. She looked up at me the entire time.

A tremor shuddered through me. "That was good," I assured her breathlessly.

"Mmm." She nodded in affirmation. "But not quite the same reaction." She smiled up at me.

Next she took me back into her mouth and closed her eyes as she took me as deep as she could. Her tongue played along the underside of my shaft at the same time. As she moved back, her hand followed the path her mouth had taken. Her free hand was cradling my testicles.

"God, Scully," I moaned.

"Hmm." She kissed the head of my cock. "Still not the same. Let me try again."

She repeated what she'd just done, taking me in as far as she could, still using her tongue and her hand, but then she flicked her eyes up at me and gazed, yes gazed, at me as her mouth moved over me.

Her little experiment worked; damned scientific method. My balls practically leapt out of her hand. I was sure she'd gone too far. I felt the telltale tingling in my balls that always preceded my orgasms, but she clamped her thumb and forefinger around the base of my shaft.

Her mouth left me again. My eyes were closed, but I could tell that my penis was out in the open air. It felt extremely cold compared to her mouth. As soon as she'd massaged my testicles away from my body again, she began to lightly stroke my cock.

"It's my eyes," she murmured.

"Huh?" I felt dazed.

"You like it when I look up at you when I have you in my mouth." Her voice was rich and low.

I groaned when her lips closed around me again. "It's more than that." It came out as a whisper.

She made the slurping noise again as my cock slid out of her mouth once more. My eyes rolled back in my head.

"What do you mean?"

"It's-" I paused, trying to steady my voice. "It's not just that you're looking up at me, Scully. It's how you're looking up at me."

"How am I looking up at you?" She smiled coyly.

"Like you're enjoying this as much as I am." I shuddered as her tongue teased the underside of the head of my cock. "Like you're fucking me with your eyes."

Scully and I were newly intimate and I wasn't sure what she would think of my turn of phrase, but if it bothered her, she sure as hell didn't show it.

"You mean like this?" She held my cock against me again and licked me like an ice cream cone as she fixed her eyes on mine.

"God, yes," I moaned as my body shuddered again.

"Mmm." She sounded pleased with herself. "You seem to like this, too." She took me into her mouth once more so she could make the slurping noise. She chuckled with satisfaction when my body vibrated.

"Yeah," I responded eloquently. It felt like my entire body was humming. If she wasn't careful, I might topple off the edge of the tub and injure myself further.

"I wonder what would happen-" she paused. "Look at me, Mulder."

"Hmm?" I dragged my eyes open.

"If I did this?" Her eyes gleamed mischievously at me. "Make sure you keep your eyes open." She grinned slyly at me as she lowered her mouth to my cock.

At first she moved slowly, letting me slide in as far as she could take me, keeping her eyes closed. Then she began to work her tongue, letting it tickle my shaft. Every muscle in my body was beginning to vibrate. When her hand began to stroke me, I thought it would spell the end, but I fought to hang on. My chest heaved as I struggled for air and I felt sweat trickling down my back. My skin felt flushed and I began to tingle; not just my balls - everywhere began to tingle. And then she did it. Her lids slowly opened and she started to fuck me with those miraculously big blue eyes.

And fucked, I was.

When my balls tightened, Scully did her best to massage them down, but there was no going back. It felt like I was going to explode. This time when she made the slurping noise, I heard myself start to growl. She took me back into her mouth quickly. She was still using one hand to stroke me and the other to caress my testicles. When I began to quake, I felt her hum against my cock and I was gone.

For the first time in my life, I actually felt my balls pulse as my climax crashed over me. My body shook and trembled. My cock throbbed in her mouth. Waves of heat washed through me and I think I forgot to breathe.

The first thing I heard when awareness began to creep over me was the sound of my ass sliding down the enamel tub. I felt Scully's warm body against me and I wrapped my arms around her. She laid her head against my chest as I took long shaky breaths. We lay like that in the tub until my breathing quieted.

I still had my eyes closed when I felt Scully begin to move. Her body slid along mine and I sighed contentedly when she pressed a gentle kiss against my lips.

"I'm going to actually fill the tub now." Her mouth was so close to mine that her breath tickled my lips. "We started this process over an hour ago," she chuckled as she pushed herself off of me.

"Mmm." I nodded lethargically.

"How's your ankle?" She enquired, her voice now further away.

"Feels great," I mumbled.

"That'll wear off in no time," she laughed as she turned the taps on.

Soon warm water began to envelop me. If Scully hadn't started to soap me up I'm sure I would've fallen asleep. She started at my feet and began to steadily work her way along my body. She was using a washcloth, but when she reached my upper thighs and settled in front of me, I picked up her soap and squirted some into my hand.

She quirked a quizzical eyebrow at me as a smile played at her mouth.

"I prefer the direct approach." My voice was still a little raspy.

From the amount of lather we generated, we must have gotten clean, but my mind was elsewhere. My hands, however, were everywhere. As I revelled in the softness of her skin, the firmness of her ass, the weight of her breast in my palm, the hardness of her nipples against my thumbs, the gentle, yet insistent way her tongue explored my mouth, I felt her hips begin to move against me.

I eased my hand between us and she groaned when I slipped two fingers inside of her. It was all I had to offer at that point, but judging by the orgasm that followed a couple of minutes later, Scully didn't mind in the least. And I thoroughly enjoyed the way she moaned my name as she shuddered against me.

We finally got out of the tub when the water grew too cool. Scully re-wrapped my ankle and insisted that I keep my foot elevated. Once she was happy with the way I was settled on the bed she left to get some ice. By the time she got back I'd found a program on Discovery about ancient myths. She rolled her eyes at me as she created an ice bag out of a towel. For some reason her eye roll made me absurdly happy.

"Do you want to watch something else?" I offered.

She shook her head. "I'm starving, Mulder. I'll go out and get us something to eat and see about getting your clothes washed."

"I guess breakfast was a long time ago." I nodded.

"Will you be okay by yourself?" She leaned over and placed a soft kiss against my lips, almost like it was a familiar gesture; like we'd been doing it forever. I wished we'd been doing it forever.

"Yeah, I'll be okay." I was lying. "I want you to stay." The words spilled out of my mouth before I could stop them. Scully had one knee on the bed and was still half bent over me. A look of confusion fluttered across her face as I reached up to slide my hand into her hair. "Please stay," I whispered as I pulled her in for another kiss.

She collapsed on top of me as we kissed hungrily. We didn't part until we were gasping for air.

"What was that all about, Mulder?" Scully slid to the bed beside me, panting. "Why did you say you'd be okay if you wanted me to stay?"

"I would've survived, but I'll be happier if you stay," I explained.

"Of course I'll stay, if that's what you want." She smiled at me as she raised herself up onto her elbow. "I guess I can order some pizza, but at some point I'd like to buy a few things – at least some fresh fruit. I also still need to call Skinner and I have to reschedule Ted Johnson."

Within forty five minutes Scully had called Skinner to tell him about my injury, promising to keep a close eye on me. She grinned at me as she made that promise. She called Ted Johnson and apologized for missing our appointment. After explaining what happened to me, she arranged for us to visit Ted the following morning at ten. She called the front desk to find out that, no, they didn't have a laundry service, but there was a Laundromat about a mile away. She also got directions to the nearest market.

Once the pizza arrived, I had her to myself again. She left the room briefly to grab a few things from her room and to get fresh ice for my ankle, but other than that we spent the rest of the day gloriously alone.

Over the years I'd discovered that Scully rarely said no to me and even when she did, I could often talk her around. I took advantage of that knowledge more than I care to admit. When it came to my health, however, she never backed down. Now that we were intimate and I was injured, she imposed restrictions on what positions we could use. While I was somewhat disappointed by the limitations she enforced, it led me to discover a new bargaining tool. Using my exaggerated despondency over my confinement, I talked her into staying naked to make me feel better and there was less whining involved on my part than I anticipated.

Although I was still looking forward to being able to make love with Scully the way I wanted to, several hours of being able to openly ogle her exquisite body kept my anguish at bay. Making love in two Scully approved positions hadn't hurt either. There had also been a significant amount of heavy petting and some serious cuddling.

As we settled in to bed, she let me spoon up to her. It was one of the approved positions. I loved the way our bodies fit together. I let out a long slow breath as I held her tightly against me.

"Scully?"

"Mmm?'

"I love the way you keep me off my feet."

End chapter 6


	7. Chapter 7

Title: Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 7

Author: Andrea

Rating: NC-17

Category: X-File, MSR, Mulder POV

Disclaimer: Mulder and Scully aren't mine, but everyone else is.

Notes: Thanks to Dan, Mimic and Karen for beta reading.

Spoilers: thru season 6.

Feedback: Please!

Bryson City, NC

April 9, 1999

6:55 am

When I woke up Thursday morning, Scully was no longer in bed with me. I found her in the bathroom, already showered. I'm not sure what she was thinking. She'd known me for six years. She must have had an inkling about my sexual appetite. It wasn't like I kept it a secret. I knew by the time I was done saying good morning she would definitely need another shower.

Her still-damp hair was combed away from her face and she was putting her make-up on, leaning toward the mirror. She was clad only in her bra and panties and the way she was bending made her rear end jut out tantalizingly; not that I needed any inducement.

My 'good morning' began with a caress to her bottom and ended with her head and shoulders against the bathroom mirror as we shared shuddering orgasms. On top of the vanity wasn't a Scully-approved position, but she hadn't said a word – about that, anyway. There were plenty of yeses, oh Gods and Mulders - my personal favorite - called out. There were also many numerous sounds that weren't words which were music to my ears. Scully may not have been able to carry a tune, but the way she moaned rocked my world.

Since Scully had to shower again, she agreed to let me shower with her, despite my ankle. I knew she was all the support I needed. I would've liked to spend more time naked and soapy with her, but there was a limit to how long I could stand on one leg. Once we were dry, Scully inspected and rewrapped my ankle. She told me it was healing nicely. In spite of our extra curricular activity we still had time for a fairly leisurely breakfast before it was time to leave for Yellow Creek.

The haze that gave the Smoky Mountains their name was still clinging to the trees as we drove toward Ted Johnson's place. The sun was doing its best to burn off the fog, its rays diffusing through the mist. Where it managed to break through, it lit up the droplets left by the watery suspension like a prism.

"Mmm." I sighed.

"What?" Scully's eyes flicked over at me.

"It looks nice, the mist." I was draped over the passenger seat, feeling quite relaxed.

She hunched a bit to peer through the windshield at the fog. "It's really the volatile organic compounds that make it spectacular," she said offhandedly and then turned her attention back to the road.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, they stop the water from burning off quickly."

"So, you're saying it's pollution?"

"No, not at all." She shook her head vigorously. "The VOCs are naturally occurring; generated by the trees. It's a natural phenomenon."

"It's kind of eerie."

"You just said it looked nice." I could see her forehead furrowing. I was going to give the woman premature wrinkles.

"The sun was breaking through the clouds when I said that. Now it's become thicker, rolling in on itself, like it's trying to surround us."

"It's not cognizant, Mulder. There is probably a direct correlation between the thickness of the fog and the density of a specific type of tree."

"It's still kind of –" I paused for effect, "spooky."

"I'd call it annoying." She ignored my attempt at humor.

"Annoying?" I straightened up to look at the road. The visibility had gotten worse, but it didn't seem bad enough to be a problem. "Why?"

"It makes my hair frizzy."

I chuckled as I resumed my sprawled out position. Scully joking with me made a pleasant warmth spread over me.

"Why do you straighten it? It looks nice curly." I focused my attention on her.

"Freckles and curly red hair? Really, Mulder, do you need to ask?" She looked at me in disbelief.

"Umm." I hesitated, not sure what she was getting at.

"You've seen me with no make-up and my hair curly. How old do I look?"

"Kinda young, I guess."

"Yeah, kinda." She rolled her eyes at me. "Does that answer your question?"

"Yeah, you're the only woman I know who wants to look older." I shifted my ass so that I was leaning half against the door. I didn't have to turn my head to look at her.

"Not older, just my actual age." She looked over at me. "What are you doing?"

"Enjoying the view." I kept my voice low. "I assume I'm allowed that luxury now."

"Mulder!" Her cheeks shone pink, even through her make-up.

I was about to expound upon what a luxury it really was when Scully gasped, took her foot off the gas and swerved onto the shoulder as a deer skittered in front of us. She'd obviously paid attention during our mandated defensive driving courses. No sooner had the deer safely made it to the other side of the road when two cars emerged from the mist, side by side, definitely exceeding the speed limit.

After they'd roared past us, Scully turned to look at me wide-eyed. "If that deer hadn't –" She put a shaky hand to her chest.

"I know." I let out the breath I'd been holding. "That was weird."

"I might say lucky." Scully cocked her head at me. "I don't know if I'd say weird."

"Definitely lucky. Weird because deer are crepuscular."

"Crepuscular?" Both of her eyebrows were raised.

"They only come out to feed at dawn and dusk. Dawn was almost five hours ago."

"Crepuscular?" A smile was twitched at the corners of her mouth.

"Indian guide," I reminded her. "And the memory doesn't hurt."

"Okay." She shook her head slightly. "And deer being crepuscular is significant because -?"

"Because dawn was a while ago," I repeated.

"Mulder, all that happened was something startled the deer and made it run out in front of us. That's why it was lucky." She looked over her shoulder and pulled out onto the road.

I didn't say anything because for once I wasn't sure if I actually believed what I was considering. It seemed to me that someone or something was watching out for us. Scully might not argue about having an angel on her shoulder, but I knew how she'd react to the suggestion that it might be a different winged being perched there.

I had made this trip in the hope that I could actually document the existence of fairies. Aside from everything else Scully meant to me, having her there to lend scientific credence to anything I might find was something I don't think Blevins, in his short sightedness, had actually considered. I knew Scully didn't believe that fairies existed, despite what she'd said about how hard it would be to catch one if they did. There was little doubt in my mind how she would react to the suggestion that one or both of us had a fairy godmother, for lack of a better term.

"Why so quiet?" Scully asked as she turned onto Yellow Creek Road. "I hope you aren't holding back because things between us have changed."

"No, I'm holding back because what I'm thinking is far-fetched, even for me."

I wasn't sure which one of us was more surprised by that admission. I certainly hadn't meant to say it out loud. Scully's eyebrows almost reached her hairline.

"If you don't believe it, I really need to know what it is."

"I'm not saying I don't believe it. It's just out there," I admitted.

"Just tell me."

"I think maybe one or both of us is being protected."

"Protected? By what? And if it's you, they really suck at it, judging by your ankle."

"By fairies and maybe it's just you." I shrugged.

"Could you please pick one theory and stick with it?" She sighed impatiently. "First they're pranksters and now they're protecting me?"

"Could you please explain wave particle duality to me, Scully?"

"Saying that light can behave both like a particle and a wave is hardly the same thing as saying fairies can be tricksters and guardians. Those things are opposites."

"So are waves and particles. And who says fairies can't be playful on the one hand and caring on the other? Why do they have to be one dimensional?"

"I don't even know why I'm arguing about this." She shook her head.

"Is this an argument? I thought this was a discussion," I remarked placidly.

"Okay." She took a long slow breath. "Let's say fairies exist."

"Haven't we had this conversation already?"

"Work with me here, Mulder."

"You already know I don't have any issues with that concept."

"So if they do exist, you're right, they could be multifaceted creatures."

"Have I ever told you how absurdly happy it makes me to hear you say I'm right?" I squirmed a little in my seat.

"Shut up, Mulder. I'm not finished."

I closed my mouth and blinked innocently at her. Her eyes were fixed intently on the road, so I doubt she noticed.

"Why would these complex mystical beings want to protect me?"

"If I had all of the answers, we wouldn't be out here investigating."

"That's a cop-out, Mulder. You must have a reason to think that."

I noticed the car was beginning to slow down. I looked up to discover we were almost to the Johnson house.

"I don't think it's outside the realm of possibility that someone might want to protect you, Scully." I told her as she turned into the driveway.

"So the fairies want to protect me because you're in love with me?" She sounded amused as she turned off the ignition.

"Maybe they have particularly good taste." I reached into the backseat for my crutches.

"I'll get them." She released her seatbelt.

While she hurried around the car, I undid my seatbelt and opened the door.

By the time she'd retrieved them, I had both of my feet on the driveway. Before she handed them to me, she surprised my with a soft kiss.

"I love you, too," she murmured.

I didn't get a chance to reciprocate. She straightened up quickly and moved out of my way. I was in the process of scooting my butt off the seat when Ted Johnson's voice startled me.

"Good morning, Agent Scully."

I saw surprise register on her face. It was barely perceptible. Most people wouldn't even have noticed.

"Mr. Johnson." She smiled at him.

"Agent Mulder." Ted nodded at me. "I hear you took a bit of a tumble."

"A bit." I chuckled ruefully.

"I went out and had a look. That was quite the sink hole, but what were you doing way over there? That was a good distance west of where I left you."

"I guess we got a little off course." Scully gave him a forced smile.

"We never found that gully. I'd still like to see it," I let him know as I hauled myself up.

"But not today," Scully said. "Maybe tomorrow if that ankle looks better."

Ted looked at Scully and then at me, obviously unsure of what to make of our dynamic.

"My personal physician." I nodded toward Scully.

"Sometimes I wonder if that wasn't the real reason I was partnered with you." She rolled her eyes at me. "To take some of the burden off the Bureau's health insurance carrier."

"You've been in the hospital more than I have, or at least the same amount of time," I countered as I began to crutch my way away from the car.

"Let's use the side door." Ted pointed out its location. "Less stairs that way."

Scully closed the car door behind me and then fell in beside me. When I met her eyes, she gave me a questioning look. I knew she was wondering if Ted had seen her kiss me. I gave her the best shrug my crutches would allow.

We spent about an hour in Ted's darkroom. We looked at his chemicals; they weren't past their expiration dates. We checked his film. It was fine too. He talked and walked us through the process. When he was done, I knew more about developers, stop baths, fixers and wetting agents than I'd ever wanted to, but nothing he showed us led me to believe that anything in his darkroom could've produced the images we'd seen in Amy's pictures. There was still one other way besides outright forgery that might have created those images. If I didn't rule it out, Scully would never let me hear the end of it.

"Mr. Johnson, I was wondering if you would consider letting us borrow the camera that Amy took those pictures with?"

"For how long? Amy loves that camera."

"Assuming Doc Scully gives me the go-ahead to check out the gully tomorrow, just until I take a few rolls of film with it."

"I guess that would be okay," Ted acquiesced. "And tomorrow I should have time to walk you all the way in."

"We would really appreciate that." Scully relaxed immediately.

I knew then that I'd be allowed to go back tomorrow. Scully was already pleased with the way I was healing and now she knew we wouldn't get lost again.

"And could I trade you some film?" I continued. "So I can use some from the lot Amy used and then I'll buy some and make sure it's from a different lot."

"Okay," Ted agreed hesitantly, apparently confused.

"Just using different permutations and combinations to ensure we've covered every possibility," Scully explained.

"And what is any of this going to tell you?" His question was directed at Scully.

"It will tell us if the images on the film were created by some other means," she answered him.

"You think she faked them." It wasn't a question.

"We're trying to make sure it wasn't some combination of the film and camera that resulted in those pictures." I interjected. "I don't think Amy faked anything."

"I didn't mean to imply she had, Mr. Johnson," Scully told him sincerely.

"We can't leave any room for doubt," I added.

"I'm sorry." Ted's eyes were downcast. "I'm just worried that she's going to be labelled as a kook."

"I think a healthy imagination is a good thing," Scully assured him. "I doubt anyone thinks she's a kook."

"A healthy imagination," Ted nodded, happy with that explanation. "I had quite the imagination when I was her age."

We left Ted Johnson feeling somewhat better and headed back to Bryson City. We'd arranged to meet him the following day at 1:30. It was lunch time when we arrived in town. After another meal in a diner, Scully insisted that we buy some groceries. I took that opportunity to buy the film I wanted and a few other things. Scully raised an eyebrow at the can of whipped cream, maraschino cherries and the chocolate syrup I picked, and then rolled her eyes at me when I said it was for dessert. Once back in my room, Scully called Skinner to let him know how I was doing and how the case was progressing. Then she opened her laptop to add notes to the case file about our visit to Ted's darkroom. When she was done, I had her to myself again.

It was then she found out that she was dessert; the whipped cream, maraschino cherries and chocolate syrup her topping. I'd actually expected her to be much harder to convince, but as it turns out, Dana Scully is every bit the hedonist that I am. My cock throbbed as she stripped, laid down on the bed and smiled up at me, waiting for me to begin. It took every ounce of my willpower not to throw myself on top of her right away. Well, my ankle injury may have slowed me down a little, too.

I began by transforming her breasts into my version of an ice cream sundae. First covering them with whipped cream, making her shiver at its coolness, I proceeded to drizzle chocolate syrup over each peak. I finished by topping each nipple with a cherry. It took me almost half an hour to finish eating both. Her belly became a crepe, and as I moved lower, I suddenly wished I bought a banana. Scully seemed to enjoy the banana-less split I created, none the less, judging by how hard she came.

Finally, I could wait no longer. I kissed my way back to her mouth, perhaps the most luscious part of the delicacy that is Scully and had my fill. I didn't rush my final course, the one I shared with her. The way she quaked around me told me that she treasured this last indulgence as much as I did.

At the end of my sweet treat we were both very sated and very sticky, leading to Scully's third shower of the day.

We stayed in for supper, just making sandwiches with the food Scully had bought. Then it was her turn to choose dessert. She opted for peanut butter on a stick; my stick.

It seemed Scully had learned her lesson Thursday morning, and was still in bed with me when I woke up around 9 on Friday . We had plenty of time to make slow, sensuous love. When I finally released into her, my powerful orgasm also triggered a flood of emotions and she held me tightly, caressing my back as I professed my love to her over and over.

It was past noon Friday when we left for Yellow Creek. The haze had burned off so we were able to enjoy a sunny spring drive. Scully often complained about the amount of time we spent stuck in cars, but to me, nothing was more liberating than the open road on a nice day. Having the woman of my dreams as my driver only added to my sense of bliss.

"What was that sigh for?" Scully smiled at me. "No mist today."

"I'm just having an 'all is right with the world' kind of moment," I explained, although I hadn't realized that I'd sighed.

"One of those moments where you're so happy it feels like your heart is swelling?" she asked softly.

"Yeah." I nodded, feeling an overwhelming rush of emotions surging within me again. "Like it might burst."

"Me too." She reached for my hand. I took her proffered hand and held it tightly.

We said nothing more. Scully took her hand back to make the turn toward Yellow Creek, but reached out for me again immediately. As her fingers entwined around mine, I was positive there was no luckier or happier man in the world.

We arrived fifteen minutes early at the spot Ted had shown us Wednesday. There was quite a bit of equipment to carry up the hill. I had three cameras, extra lenses for all three and copious amounts of film, even though one of the cameras was digital. Scully ended up carrying all three camera bags. Whenever I tried, the cameras kept banging into my crutches. I carried our water.

When Ted arrived he told us it normally would take around half an hour to reach the gully, but my crutches would likely make it a little longer. Scully raised an eyebrow at me when Ted was speaking. We'd obviously gotten off course very early on in our original attempt. Apparently she loved me enough not to say anything in front of Ted.

It was slow going for the first couple of minutes, but I quickly discovered that if I angled my body to match the slope of the mountainside, I could better keep my balance and we started making some actual headway. Scully stayed with me and listened as I told her my plans. I'd talked to Chuck Burks before we left D.C. and he'd given me some advice about different film speeds and f-stops to try. Chuck and I had reasoned that fairies may be as difficult to capture on film as ghosts, so having the camera set up properly was crucial.

"That may be why there are so few pictures of fairies," I told her as I looked up the hillside at Ted. He was fifty feet or so ahead of us.

"Almost there," he called down.

"Speaking of fairies, Mulder, look at –" Scully's voice stopped abruptly.

When I turned toward her, she wasn't there.

My mind whirled.

Where could she have gone? She'd just been there; right beside me.

"Scully?" I spun around as fast as I could on my crutches. She wasn't there.

"Scully!" I yelled as I scanned the trees frantically.

I could hear Ted running down the hill toward me.

"Scully!" I screamed as I collapsed to the ground.

End chapter 7


	8. Chapter 8

Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 8

By Andrea

Yellow Creek, NC

April 9, 1999

2:07 pm

I was still sitting in a crumpled heap; legs, arms and crutches all intertwined, when Ted reached me.

"What happened?" he asked breathlessly. "Where's Agent Scully?"

"She disappeared." My voice sounded hollow.

"People don't just disappear." Ted scanned the trees. "She has to be somewhere."

I wasn't up for having that argument with Ted. The only person I liked to debate with had just vanished.

"She was walking a couple of steps behind me and said 'Speaking of fairies', then nothing. When I turned to see why she'd stopped talking, she wasn't there." I untangled myself and stood up.

"Maybe there's another sinkhole." He scanned the ground.

"I'm telling you, she was right here." I hobbled to the spot I was sure she'd been. "Scully!" I yelled as loud as I could, startling Ted.

"Maybe she fell down the hill." He peered in that direction.

I shook my head. "I would've heard that. And we'd be able to see where she fell."

I looked at the ground to confirm there was no evidence of scuff or drag marks in the soil; no disturbance to the groundcover.

"Look." I pointed at an obvious trail leading up the hill to where we were standing. "You can see the path I took on my crutches. We'd be able to tell if she'd fallen."

My heart pounded in my chest as I excluded possibilities.

"And here." I dropped to my knees. "Look at this."

It appeared that Scully had moved some leaf litter with her foot, revealing a couple of mushrooms. "She was right here!"

Ted said nothing. Instead he drew his bottom lip over his moustache as he thought, still scanning the trees. Then he began to walk in ever larger circles around me. I was having trouble concentrating and Ted was distracting me. I couldn't fathom what might have happened. This wasn't the first time that Scully had gone missing, but every other time I had something to go on; some evidence, a theory, a suspect – something. Today she had simply vanished into thin air.

"Please, Scully." I sank back to the ground. "Please don't leave me." Covering my face with my hands, I closed my eyes and tried to focus.

"We'll find her, Agent Mulder." I felt Ted's hand on my shoulder. "I think we should get Search and Rescue involved. Let's go back to my truck. I can radio from there."

"I'm staying here." I didn't lift my head.

"I can't leave you here, like this. Not when you're injured," he argued.

"I'll be fine." I didn't budge. "You're coming back, right?" I didn't look at him.

"I'm not comfortable with this, but I can hardly drag you down the hill. I'll be as fast as I can." I heard him walk away.

I waited until the sound of his footfalls faded before I lifted my head.

"Scully, where are you?" My voice broke as I spoke. "Where could you possibly be?"

I ran through the possibilities again. She hadn't fallen down the hill or into a sinkhole. She wasn't abducted. I knew what that looked like. What else could there be? Was she here, just not visible? If so she'd still be able to talk. What was left? Had she been wiped from this plain of existence? The thought made a chill run through me. But if that was the case, why did nothing happen to Ted or me?

I ran through everything I could think of, but I couldn't remember a single X-file that was anything like this. I knew there were theories that time travel could result in someone suddenly no longer existing, but my understanding was if that had happened, I wouldn't remember Scully. And I remembered; every cell of my being remembered. In fact, it seemed like every one of those cells was mourning her loss and my heart ached like it never had before. Whoever said it was better to have loved and lost was full of shit.

My brain was going in circles, like it was chasing something that was just out of its reach. If there was some other reason for Scully's disappearance, it was escaping me. I found myself staring at the spot she'd cleared with her foot. What had she said, exactly?

'Speaking of fairies, Mulder, look at-'.

Look at what? What was she trying to show me? She'd uncovered a couple of mushrooms. As I noticed another mushroom poking up through the dead leaves, the feeling of being weighted down began to dissipate. Moving to my knees, I swept more debris away with my fingers, uncovering even more mushrooms. The toadstools I was exposing formed a curving line. Not a single one was out of place.

My knees grew damp as I crawled along the forest floor, revealing more and more fungi. My pulse raced when I realized what I'd discovered. It was a circle; a circle of mushrooms. And it was a large one. It had to be nine feet in diameter. Scully must have spotted the pattern, even through the leaf litter. She'd been trying to show me a fairy ring!

This couldn't be a coincidence. I tried to think back to my research and what it had said about fairy rings. In the British Isles, they were believed to be sites where the fairy folk, the Fae, danced and sang. In other parts of Europe, people called them witch's rings. They were thought to be places where witches cast spells and did all manner of things that witches were wont to do.

Despite the fact that she'd been pointing out a fairy ring to me, I know what Scully would say.

'Mycelia have a natural tendency to spread out in a ring-like shape, Mulder.'

I could hear her voice as though she were standing right beside me. She would my name in a way that was the vocal equivalent of an eye roll. Of course, Scully would never say 'Mushrooms sometimes grow in rings'. That would be too easy.

'Perhaps it's a supernatural tendency.' I would counter.

I could picture her rolling her eyes at my suggestion.

She'd been gone no more than fifteen minutes and I was already having a conversation with her in my head. If I didn't find her soon, they'd have me in a rubber room in no time.

I crawled back to my crutches and hauled myself to my feet. I looked down the mountain, but there was no sign of Ted. I scanned the trees again, but there was no sign of Scully. Turning my face toward the sky, I bellowed her name, scaring a few birds. I let my chin fall to my chest, looking at the ground, but not seeing anything. Suddenly all the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. My hands and feet began to tingle. Suddenly I remembered one more belief about fairy rings.

I spun around as fast as my crutches would carry me. I was just in time to see Scully collapsing to the ground near the center of the circle.

"Scully! Are you okay?" I was at her side quickly. I slipped the camera bags off her shoulders.

"I feel kind of groggy." She tried to sit up, but her face became ashen all of a sudden.

"Lie still," I instructed gently as I helped her recline. "What happened? Where did you go?"

"I don't know." She shook her head slightly. "One second I was talking to you and the next, you were gone."

"I was gone? You were still here?"

"Sort of, I don't know. Where did the little girl go?" She raised herself up on her elbows to look around.

"What little girl? There's no one else here," I assured her, looking closely at her eyes. Her pupils seemed to be dilated.

"This is so weird," she groaned. "When you vanished, everything was the same, just brighter. I could hear you calling me. It was faint, but I could hear you. I tried to tell you I was here but you couldn't hear me. When I got really upset the little girl told me she would bring me back."

"Bring you back? I thought you said you were here."

"I was. I don't understand, but that's what she said. 'Don't worry, Dana, I'll take you back to him.'."

"She called you Dana?"

"Yeah." She nodded and then set her head down. "How did she know my name, Mulder?"

"I don't know, Scully." I had my suspicions, but I knew she wouldn't believe what I was thinking. "How little was this girl?"

"Five or six, maybe." She blinked at me. "She was wearing a pale green dress and had curly strawberry-blonde hair. You didn't see her?"

"I promise you, Scully, no one else was here. Tell me more about where you were. You said it was brighter. Did you mean like more sunlight was getting through the trees?"

"No the colors; they were brighter and blurry, too."

"Brighter and blurry?"

"Like the colors were bleeding at the edges." She nodded. "I don't know how to explain it. It was like I was tripping or something."

"I really want to know more about your high school years, Scully." I couldn't help a small smile. My relief at having her back probably had a lot to do with it. She just rolled her eyes at me. It made my stomach flip-flop.

"I love you." I gathered her into my arms. She didn't protest when my mouth closed over hers. "I was so scared," I murmured when we finally came up for air.

"I was scared, too." She flung her arms around my neck and held me tightly. "What the hell happened?"

"Do you remember what you said right before you disappeared?"

"I didn't disappear, you did."

"Semantics, Scully. Right before everything became bright and blurry, what do you remember?"

"I noticed some mushrooms and when I looked more closely, I could see that it was a fairy ring. I was in the middle of telling you when everything changed."

Before I could ask her another question, I heard Ted's voice in the distance.

"Shit," I muttered.

"What?"

"Ted went to call Search and Rescue."

Her eyebrows rose in surprise. "Search and Rescue?"

"We couldn't find you. I knew they wouldn't be able to either, but it made Ted feel better to be doing something." I shrugged.

"Well, we don't need them now. I'll go tell him." She released her hold on me and began to stand up.

"Are you sure you're okay to walk?"

"I'm fine." She smiled at me.

I could feel myself frowning before I had a chance to stop it.

"Really, I am," she assured me quickly. "I'm not groggy anymore."

She bent over and pressed a quick kiss to my lips. "I'll be quick."

She was only gone about ten minutes. I was surprised to see a hint of sadness in her eyes when she approached me.

"I'm sorry, Mulder," she whispered as she sat down beside me.

"Sorry?"

"Ted told me how upset you were."

"I was really freaked out," I admitted as I drew a shaky breath.

"He also said if he hadn't witnessed how worried you were he would've thought we faked my disappearance." She crawled into my lap as she spoke.

"Yeah?" I watched her face intently as she settled herself.

"Yeah, and then he wanted to know where I'd been." Her voice was soft and breathy. Her eyes slipped closed as she leaned forward to kiss me.

I let mine drift shut in anticipation.

Her lips barely brushed against mine and then they were gone again. Before I could open my eyes to see what she was doing, I felt the softness of her lips graze my eyelid.

"Mmm." I let myself relax into her ministrations. "What did you tell him?"

She swept her lips over my neglected eyelid before answering. "I told him I had no idea."

She didn't give me a chance to respond. Her lips pressed against mine again. When I felt her tongue pushing into my mouth, I groaned. Then her mouth was gone again. I waited patiently with my eyes closed for the return of her lips to no avail. When I opened my eyes, I found her smiling at me.

"Hold that thought, okay?"

"Do I have to?" I sighed dejectedly.

"Well, I told Ted that we still wanted to see the gully and I thought you might want to take some pictures of the fairy ring, too." She scooted back off my lap and stood up.

"Good idea." I couldn't help smirking.

"Besides, we'll need some time to debate whether I crossed the veil or not, won't we?"

My mouth hung open as I looked up at her in shock.

"I know that's what you're thinking." She held her hand out to me. "I'm not saying I agree."

"What else could it be?" I let her help me up.

"I honestly don't know, Mulder," she told me as she went to retrieve me crutches. "But I do know that fairy rings were purported to be portals into the fairy realm."

"Exactly." I nodded my head vigorously.

"We're standing in the middle of one right now, though, and we both seem to be a part of the earthly realm," she pointed out.

"Hmm." I looked around, not ready to concede defeat.

"And I didn't see any fairies, just that little girl."

"Maybe I can't cross the veil. Maybe only you can. What if I'm blocking you?" I made my way outside of the ring.

When I turned around to face her, Scully just raised her eyebrows, tilted her head at me and shrugged.

"Maybe you need to step into it again."

I watched as she left the ring and then entered it again. She stayed visible the whole time. She didn't say a word.

"You did disappear last time you stepped into it," I reminded her. "Maybe you only get one visit?"

"Then why didn't you cross?"

"Maybe only *you* can cross."

"Right," she chuckled. "I forgot. The fairies love me."

"No, I love you. The fairies have good taste."

"Well, whatever happened, we don't appear to be able to replicate it."

"But something did happen," I insisted.

"Yes, something did." She nodded slowly in agreement.

"And Ted witnessed that you were gone. I'll be able to put that into the report."

"Yes, you will. Now let's take some pictures before Ted comes back and wants to head to the gully. I think he's getting fed up with us." She walked over to pick up the cameras.

By the time Ted returned I'd taken several pictures of the ring with each camera from different angles. Try as I might, I couldn't convince Scully to pose for me, in any state of dress or undress. I had to agree when she reminded who would be developing the film.

It only took another fifteen minutes to climb to the gully. It was easy to see why it was Amy's favorite place. A small brook emerged from the side of the mountain into a pool that was about three feet in diameter. Trilliums, ladyslippers and many other flowers whose names I didn't know grew in abundance around the pool.

The stream meandered down the hill toward the west and seemed to disappear from view, but I knew it was just lost in the rolling swells. Had it flowed straight down the mountain it would have made the gully a lot easier to find.

"This is a beautiful spot." Scully's face was shining.

"It's easy to see why Amy thinks there are fairies here, I guess." Ted shrugged sheepishly.

"It is," I agreed, looking closely at the pool. I didn't see any of the ephemeral creatures with gossamer wings that appeared in Amy's pictures. I hadn't talked to her yet, though. Perhaps they'd only been visible on film.

"Ahem." Ted cleared his throat. I looked over at him. "Are you going to take the pictures? I'd like to get back. Amy will be home soon and we still need to develop what you take."

"Sorry," I muttered.

It didn't take long to use up all of the film. I thought back to Amy's pictures and tried to recreate her angles. Then I took several from above the pool as well. I didn't see anything in the view finder which made me hope the fairies were only visible on film.

When I was done, I removed the film from the cameras and stowed it securely in one of the bags. Ted stayed with us as we walked back down to the vehicles, but much to my relief, no one disappeared on the trip down.

Once back at the Johnson's place, Ted began to develop the film. We were in the darkroom when we heard Amy come home. She knocked on the door and told her dad that she was going to start her homework.

"And when I'm done, I'll start dinner, okay?"

"Thanks, honey." Ted smiled at us. "She's a good kid." He lowered his voice to tell us.

I wished that he'd agree to let us talk to her, but I knew Scully wouldn't allow me to push it.

"Not many kids I know do their homework without prodding," Scully agreed. "Never mind make dinner."

"She does a lot more around the house since..." Ted's voice trailed off.

"She's a strong girl," Scully commented softly.

I wondered if Amy reminded Scully of herself as a young girl. In my mind, Scully had always been strong and independent. From the stories she'd told me and the ones I'd heard from her mother, I suspected the way I pictured her was correct. What I didn't know was if Scully saw herself mirrored in this girl she hadn't met.

Ted returned to his work silently. The process of developing the film took about an hour and when Ted had all of the pictures hanging to dry, we emerged, blinking our eyes to adjust to the light.

"We're done down here, Amy," Ted called upstairs.

I heard the sound of something clattering to the counter and footsteps on the floor above.

"Daddy!" Amy called as she pulled open the basement stairs. She ran down the stairs quickly, her blonde hair flying behind her and threw her arms around Ted's waist.

"How was school?" he asked after he kissed the top of her head.

"Okay." She shrugged, her head still against his chest.

"What did you do?"

"Nothin'."

"I find it amazing that you can spend six hours in a classroom and do nothing," he commented as he winked at us.

"Well, nothing interesting." She shrugged again. "I'm making spaghetti," she continued without waiting for her father to respond.

"It smells good." He gave her a squeeze.

"Can the FBI people stay, too, Dad? I made enough for all of us." Amy's eyes flicked over at us and then up at her father.

"I'm sure they have more important things to do, Amy."

She looked over at us expectantly. I didn't know what to say. I wasn't sure how good a cook she was. Her cooking skills were immaterial to me. I really wanted to talk to her about her pictures. I knew any decision I made would be tempered by that. So I deferred to Scully, by raising my eyebrows at her.

"We wouldn't want to impose," Scully said diplomatically.

"You wouldn't be, would they, Dad?" Amy looked at her father hopefully.

I began to suspect that Amy wanted to talk to us as much as I wanted to talk to her.

"Well," Ted hesitated.

"Please, Daddy? Please!"

End chapter 8


	9. Chapter 9

Title: Smoky Mountain Folk, chapter 9

Author: Andrea

Rating: this chapter is R

Category: Case file, MSR, Mulder POV

Disclaimer: CC's, not mine

Spoilers: Detour

Notes: Thanks to Mimic, FatCat and Dan for beta reading. Thanks to Charmaine for unwavering honesty

Feedback: Do I have to beg?

********************

April 9, 1999 Yellow Creek, NC 5:47 pm

There may have been many murky issues surrounding this case, but there was one thing I was sure of; Ted Johnson would do anything for his daughter. Most notably, he would do anything to keep her from harm. I can't say that I blamed him. I'd probably be the same way with a daughter of my own. I knew he didn't want us questioning her, but I could tell by his body language that his resolve was fading. Despite wanting to keep Amy separate from our investigation, he couldn't bring himself to say no to her.

"Are you sure we wouldn't be keeping you from anything?" Ted looked at me.

It was obvious that he didn't want us to stay, but he wanted Amy to think Scully and I had to leave. He obviously didn't know me as well as I knew him. A better person would've felt a twinge of guilt.

I shrugged. "Nope, nothing. And a home-cooked meal would be nice. Wouldn't it, Scully?" I smiled at her.

"Yes, very nice." She nodded, giving Amy a smile then turned toward me to give me a warning look. Unlike Ted, she knew me very well.

Amy clapped her hands "Yay! It's almost done. It'll only be another fifteen minutes." She beamed at us and then turned to dash up the stairs.

Ted turned to face me as soon as his daughter was out of sight. "I don't want you interrogating her." He kept his voice low.

"Furthest thing from my mind," I assured him with a smile. "But would it be okay if I asked her a couple of general questions?"

"Like what?" Ted's eyes narrowed.

"I'd like to ask her what the weather was like that day or if she remembers anything out of the ordinary."

"That's all?" He looked both surprised and relieved.

"That's all." I nodded.

"I guess that would be all right," he consented grudgingly.

When we sat down to dinner, the atmosphere felt strained. I was expecting Amy to be more of a chatterbox based on the way she'd been with her dad, but she was extremely quiet. Scully broke the silence by complimenting Amy on the food, which as it turned out, was better than anything I could've made. She blushed and thanked Scully, but then fell silent again. I hoped she might start talking about something and give me an opening, but all she did was glance at me quickly a couple of times and then looked at her plate again. I had no choice but to dive straight in.

"So, Amy, your dad said I could ask you a couple of questions. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes, sir." Her eyes were wide with anticipation.

"Do you remember what the weather was like when you took the pictures your uncle was selling?"

"I'm not allowed to take the camera outside when it's rainy, so I only ever take it when it's sunny," she informed me evenly. "Besides, when it's cloudy, the pictures aren't as pretty." She shrugged one shoulder.

"I see." I nodded slowly. "Did anything unusual happen?"

"Unusual?"

"Anything that struck you as weird," I clarified.

"No, sir."

As I drew a breath to ask her a more pointed question, Scully kicked my shin. Sometimes having a partner who knows you inside and out was a pain in the ass. I bit my tongue and let Scully make conversation for the rest of the meal. She talked to Amy about photography and about school, but stayed away from anything case-related. I sat and stewed. My avenues of investigation were quickly running out.

Scully offered to help Amy with the dishes while Ted and I retrieved the photos I'd taken. When we first developed them I hadn't seen anything remotely fairy-like but I hoped something might show up while the pictures dried. I studied each picture closely as Ted took them down only to discover they remained annoyingly devoid of the Sidhe.

"I told you it was a trick of the light," Ted said quietly after I sighed.

"Mmm." I nodded, deciding I'd gain nothing by cold-cocking him. I knew what Amy had captured was no trick of the light but I also knew there was no way I could convince him of that unless I had proof. In fact, he was probably more skeptical than Scully.

I'd tried every variable I could think of to maximize my chances of having photographic evidence, but here I was, again, with nothing. I knew in my heart the fae were here in the Smoky Mountains. I could feel it; that unnerving tingling feeling I always got when I was right on the brink of conclusive proof. But everything I had so far was anecdotal. The only empirical evidence was Amy's pictures. In spite of the fact the experts said the pictures weren't faked, I knew they wouldn't hold up on their own as definitive confirmation of the existence of fairies.

I could go on and on about Scully and I getting lost, a deer saving us from certain death, or Scully disappearing into thin air only to reappear twenty minutes later, but those things would not be considered evidence or would be dismissed as coincidental. But if those events could be backed up by a separate set of pictures taken by a second individual, they might carry more weight. However, the strange occurrences that convinced me the most would surely only exasperate Scully. Since my pictures showed nothing and Amy didn't give us anything new to go on, the case seemed to be at a standstill.

At least I'd solved one mystery during this case. I knew now that Scully loved me, maybe even as much as I loved her. For most people that would be enough to be satisfied, but I'm one greedy son-of-a-bitch. I want it all.

As Scully backed out of the driveway out of the driveway, I let out a long sigh.

"What?" Scully's eyes flicked over at me briefly.

"We're at a dead end," I told her as I pulled the pictures out of the manila envelope Ted had given me. "There are no fairies in my pictures and without really being able to talk to Amy, we've got nowhere to go." I flipped through the pictures again; still no fae.

"I had a chance to talk to Amy while we did the dishes," Scully informed me quietly.

"And?" I felt my mood improving immediately. I put the pictures down between us and turned toward her. "What did you ask? What did she say?"

"I had no idea what you might want to ask her, but I told her that you believed she'd photographed fairies." Scully kept her eyes on the road as she spoke.

"Did she tell you anything? Anything we could use?"

"Nothing specific, but she's obviously intrigued that an adult believes her."

"But her uncle believed her," I reminded her.

"I get the feeling all he believes in is the almighty dollar, based on what Amy said."

I shook my head. "Wow, eleven is young to be disillusioned. Even I was twelve."

Scully chuckled at me. "I'd hardly classify you as disillusioned, Mulder. You still believe anything."

"At twelve I was disillusioned by my family. I learned that I could only rely on myself," I clarified as I turned to look out of my window.

"I'm sorry," she said softly as I felt her hand squeeze mine.

I turned to give her a reassuring smile. "Of course, that all changed when I met you."

"Shit, Mulder," she exclaimed softly and steered the car onto the shoulder of the road.

It wasn't the response I was expecting.

"What?"

"I have to be able to see to drive." She sniffed and blinked her eyes rapidly. "Sorry, my emotions are a little close to the surface right now."

Apparently once she opened up to me in one area, the floodgates were left wide open. The few times I'd managed to chip away at her resolve in the past, she'd always built her walls up quickly. It gave me another reason to be happy that we'd admitted our feelings for one another.

"Sorry." I gave her an apologetic smile. "But it's true. You're the only person I've relied on since then; the only one I've ever really trusted."

"But what about -" she began; the tears in her eyes gave way to confusion.

"Only you, Scully, regardless of how it might look," I insisted. "I've let other people think I trust them and so far not one of them has been worthy of my trust."

"Even..." Scully tried to ask again.

"She hasn't quite hung herself, yet, so I keep giving her more rope."

"You're not doing that with me?" she asked softly.

"No."

"What makes me so special?" She cocked her head at me. "We both know I was assigned to the X-Files to discredit your work and you're telling me I'm the only one you trust."

"Do you think I'm lying to you?" I was shocked.

"You obviously have Diana fooled. How can I be sure you aren't giving me enough rope?"

"I could give you a laundry list of reasons why you should trust me, Scully, but in the end, it's up to you. You either trust me or you don't."

We sat on the shoulder of a North Carolina side road, just staring at each other. My heart battered my ribcage and my palms had grown sweaty. I hadn't envisioned our conversation taking this turn.

"God damn it," she finally muttered. "I do trust you. I always have."

"I know." I reached for her hand and said, "I think it was partially that absolute trust you placed in me that allowed me to trust you far more easily than I'd trusted anyone. Ever."

"And the other reasons?" she asked as she threaded her fingers through mine.

"I'm not sure you'll like the answer." I gave her hand a squeeze.

"Now is hardly the time to start holding back." She arched an eyebrow at me as she continued, "How bad can it be?"

"Do you promise not to hurt me?"

"No. Spill."

"Shit."

"What if I promise not to hurt you much?" she asked lightly.

"I'm serious, Scully. I think my reason might really piss you off."

"More than I'm currently pissed off?"

"Shit."

"You said that already."

Using my free hand, I reached across my body to release my seatbelt.

"Planning to make a quick get away?" she asked dryly. "You're on crutches. I'll be able to catch you easily."

"No, I'm planning to kiss you first because I may never get the chance again."

"Stop trying to distract me and just tell me."

The woman knew me too damn well.

"Please just kiss me first, Scully." I tried to implore her without sounding too desperate.

"Have I mentioned recently, Mulder, that you're a huge pain in the ass?"

"Actually, you've been mentioning recently how much you love me," I reminded her.

"Right now I'm having a hard time remembering why."

"Maybe if you kissed me "

"You aren't going to tell me unless I do, are you?" She narrowed her eyes at me.

I shook my head.

"Can you please explain why I let you get your own way so much?" she asked in exasperation.

"I think it has a lot to do with that loving me thing." I grinned unabashedly at her.

"Truthfully, I was thinking more of getting rid of the pain in my ass." She didn't return my smile.

"Does that mean you'll kiss me?"

"I guess so," she granted grudgingly.

It wasn't the best invitation to a kiss I'd ever had, but at that point I was happy she agreed at all. As I leaned toward her, I turned in my seat and slid my hand into her hair. When our lips met, she kept hers closed, playing hard to get. As soon as I teased her with my tongue, she opened herself to me with a small sigh. My heart leapt when she groaned as our tongues met. I planned this to be a little kiss to give me some courage before I told her the truth, but her reactions made me forget my intentions.

We both fumbled with her seatbelt and pulled apart to let it retract. Before I could recapture her lips, she began to move. The next thing I knew, she was in my lap. She thrust her tongue into my mouth as she rocked against my now erect-cock. Just as my hands were closing around her breasts, her mouth left mine.

"Okay, I kissed you. Now tell me," she insisted, still breathing heavily.

Opening my eyes, I found her blue ones fixed on me. I knew there would be no more stalling. I took several long cleansing breaths before I began.

"You know I ran a background check on you," I said shakily.

"Yeah, I assumed as much. I checked you out, too." She nodded. "I knew there had to be more to you than just your spooky reputation."

"Well, once we met, I profiled you."

"During our first case?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"I knew you were sent to spy on me. I had to see where your allegiances were," I explained. "I profile everyone, Scully. You know that."

She was still sitting in my lap, but her eyes were downcast. "I guess so; it just never occurred to me that you profiled me." Suddenly her eyes flicked up to meet mine. "So this profile you did led to trusting me?"

"Yeah."

"When?"

"In Bellefleur."

"I was that easy to profile?" Her eyebrows shot up.

"At first I thought your behaviour was an act, but then I realized you couldn't be pretending to be that naive." I shrugged. "That's when I knew I could trust you."

"Because you thought I was too green to hide anything from you?"

"I knew I'd be able to tell right away if you tried." I watched her face closely, waiting for her to get angry, but she still looked mostly surprised. "It helped that I knew you trusted me completely."

"How did you know that?" Her voice was subdued.

"Maybe my profile was off, but I didn't see you as the type of person who would drop her bathrobe for someone she didn't trust."

"I did, Mulder. I trusted you completely. I thought that's what partners did." Her expression had grown sad.

I knew she'd be hurt by this revelation, but I also believed she was right. We'd reached a point in our relationship where I shouldn't be keeping things from her. I could only pray that she would respect my honesty and not hold this against me.

"Good partners learn to trust each other, Scully, when it's earned. You trusted me on simple faith."

"I did." Two large tears stood in her eyes.

"And that's what I discovered when I profiled you."

"And if you were to profile me now?" She blinked her tears away.

"Sadly, Scully, working with me has changed you. You make people earn your trust now. Ask Skinner." I gave her a small smile.

"So you don't think I'm naive anymore?"

"No, it didn't take long for your eyes to be opened. I think I know exactly when it happened."

She raised her eyebrows at me, telling me to elaborate.

"You were sitting at my desk, jotting down notes in a case file and your pen stopped working."

"The bug." She nodded. "I knew then that I couldn't trust anyone but you. Even after that you still trusted Deep Throat. Doesn't that make you just as naive?"

"I was just giving him rope."

We sat there quietly. She remained on my lap, her eyes downcast again. The sun was beginning to set behind the mountains. I wanted her to say something, but in the gathering twilight, her silence was deafening.

I couldn't stand it any longer. "How mad are you?"

She drew a long slow breath before answering. "I'm not mad."

"You aren't?"

"I was naive." She shrugged. "And I shouldn't be surprised you profiled me."

"Is there a 'but' in there?"

"I guess I'd rather you said I earned your trust through my actions than because I was so stupid you couldn't help but trust me."

"Oh, Scully," I shook my head as I spoke. "I've never thought you were stupid. Being trusting doesn't diminish your intelligence."

"In a way, it does." She leaned forward and put her head on my shoulder.

I couldn't help letting out a huge sigh of relief as I wrapped my arms around her.

"Unfortunately, Mulder, there are some things you can't learn in a book or a classroom."

"I did try to tell you."

"I know you did." She weaved her arms under mine and slid them between my back and the seat. "But those things you can't learn in a classroom are things a person needs to find out on their own."

"At least you were in your twenties before you were disillusioned." I kissed her hair.

"Lucky me." She chuckled into my shoulder.

"You may not think of it as a good thing, but how many people haven't been jaded by..."

"You *are* naive, Mulder, if you think I didn't have my share of disappointments before I met you."

"And yet you trusted me so easily."

"Maybe I was just giving you rope." I could hear the smirk in her voice.

"Scully, you went from 'Trust Everyone' to 'Trust No One' in a matter of months. I know it bugs you to hear that you were an innocent, but you're one hell of a quick study. Now you trust people less than I do."

"Just because I trusted you, doesn't mean I trusted everyone, Mulder." I could practically hear her eyes rolling. "You're still the only one I trust completely."

I took her words with a grain of salt. I knew she was talking about our work. She still trusted her family and I envied that.

"I hope you believe me now that you are the only one I trust completely."

"I do." She lifted her head and pressed a soft kiss against my lips. "We should get going."

"We should," I agreed reluctantly. I would've preferred to return to our little make out session and take it a lot further, but my knowledge of Scully told me any such activity would only happen back in our hotel room. I could live with that. Actually, I'd be ecstatic with that. My case was dead in the water, but at least I hadn't frightened Scully away, so this day wasn't a complete write-off.

"Oh," Scully began once she's pulled back onto the road. "I was actually trying to tell you something before we got off on this tangent."

"What?"

"When I was talking to Amy, I told her you wanted to ask her more questions."

"And?"

"She really wants to talk to you, too. She didn't want to say too much in front of her dad. She asked to meet us tomorrow at the gully." Scully turned to smile at me.

This was the woman who'd been sent to discredit me? I smiled to myself at the thought. That was a slight miscalculation. Wasn't it, boys?

End chapter 9


	10. Chapter 10

April 10, 1999

Bryson City, NC

10:17 am

I had no idea what kind of mood Scully would be in when we got back to the hotel after our conversation on the side of the road. It was definitely the most significant talk we'd had since our relationship changed. Our sex had been passionate up to this point, to say the least. For my part, I would almost describe it as hungry. But after our roadside discussion, we definitely made love. It was slow, sensual and sexy as hell. If anyone in the neighboring rooms was listening, they'd know I loved Scully. I told her so many times; a couple of them quite loudly.

We slept in on Saturday morning and after a return to our normal enthusiastic sex, we enjoyed a leisurely shower.

"Your ankle is looking better," Scully commented as we were drying off. "How does it feel?"

"Better."

"Do you think you can put any weight on it?" She dropped to one knee to prod at it.

"I put some weight on it last night and this morning," I reminded her with a grin.

"When?" She looked up at me, obviously missing my meaning.

"Uh, in bed with you. Remember?"

She rolled her eyes at me and sighed. If we hadn't made love less than half an hour ago, I would've been well on my way to a full-fledged erection at the sight of her crouched naked in front of me. I don't know what it said about the way my brain is hard-wired, but her eye roll turned me on even more. My balls ached from desperately trying to give me another hard-on.

"I meant can you stand on it," she said as she stood up.

"I stood on it in the shower."

"No, you used your toes for balance, like you are right now." She looked at me like I'd dropped 50 IQ points.

I felt another twinge in my testicles. First an eye roll and then talking to me like I was an idiot aroused me? Maybe I had an underlying fetish I wasn't aware of.

"Try putting your foot flat on the floor." She leaned back against the vanity to watch.

When I did as she asked I felt a searing pain immediately followed by a wave of nausea.

"No, huh?" She was at my side immediately, hand gently resting on my chest. "But it is better?"

"Than Tuesday? One hundred percent." I nodded vigorously. "But I think I'll still need crutches for a while." I grabbed them from where they were propped up against the wall.

"Go lie on the bed and I'll wrap it for you." She smiled up at me and gave my chest a gentle caress.

That action made my cock actually twitch. So I didn't have a deep-seated fetish, after all. I was simply reacting to Scully; every little nuance that made her who she was made me horny. It shouldn't have been news to me.

By the time she massaged my calf and rewrapped my ankle, there was no hiding my erection. Since she didn't want to shower again, Scully decided to take care of it in the tidiest way possible.

When my post-orgasmic fog lifted, I pulled her into a fierce kiss. I didn't care that I could taste myself. As I explored her mouth, I let my hands wander over her. When I slipped my fingers between her thighs, I discovered how wet she was.

I broke our kiss with a growl. "Scully, you have no idea how much it turns me on that giving me a blow job does this to you."

"You were expecting a different reaction?" She looked at me through heavily-lidded eyes.

"Well," I began, but then decided against telling her about my past experiences. "I guess not."

She chuckled; a low, lusty laugh that reverberated through me. "I saw that."

"Saw what?"

"You were going to say something, then you changed your mind." She leaned in and kissed me softly. "I can't speak for anyone else, but knowing that you enjoy what I'm doing is a powerful aphrodisiac for me. And from what you just said, I gather it's the same for you. Isn't that the way it should be?"

She didn't wait for me to answer. Instead she kissed me again. To show her I whole-heartedly agreed, I rolled her to her back as I stroked her mouth with my tongue. When I tried to insinuate my fingers further between her legs, she pulled out of the kiss.

"Mulder, we don't have time."

"Sure we do." I tried to recapture her lips, but she turned her head and my mouth landed on her cheek.

"Amy is expecting us. If we don't hurry, we'll be late." She pushed at my shoulders. "I told her we'd bring lunch."

Scully had planned to make sandwiches but there wasn't enough time, so we hit Bojangles on our way out of town. She ended up violating several sections of the traffic laws on the way, but we made it to the base of the mountain with enough time to spare that I didn't have to rush up the slope.

Amy met us about three quarters of the way to the gully. Her eyes were shining with excitement. She quickly offered to help Scully, who was not only carrying our lunches, but the camera bags as well.

"Oh good, you brought your cameras," she said breathlessly as she took the Bojangles bag from Scully. "I think I know what the trick is, but my dad said I wasn't allowed to take fairy pictures anymore."

As soon as the word 'trick' left Amy's mouth my heart fell.

"Trick?" Scully asked with no accusation in her voice.

"Yeah." Amy nodded. "Sometimes my pictures had fairies in them and sometimes they didn't. I think I know why now."

"Why?" I asked, not sure I really wanted to hear the answer.

"Well, you have to use a really fast shutter speed and then make sure there's a trillium in the frame. No trillium, no fairy, but the trillium has to be a little out of focus, so you can't use an auto-focus camera. You have to set it up so the focus is just in front of the flower." She smiled up at me.

"So you've never actually seen them?" I was shocked.

Amy shook her head. "Nuh-uh, only in the pictures. But they are really fairies, aren't they, Agent Mulder?"

"I believe they are, Amy," I told her sincerely.

"What do you believe, Agent Scully?" Amy turned her head to look at my partner.

"Well, Amy." Scully took a deep breath. I was very curious to hear what she would say to the little girl. "I'm not sure what to think. As a scientist, I find it difficult to accept that tiny winged magical beings are real. But we have pictures that seem to show they do exist. I would really like to believe in the existence of fairies, but I don't think the pictures we have will convince anybody but us."

"I know," Amy said with a tsk. "It would be cool if there was some other way to prove it." Her head was still turned toward Scully. "Kinda like the freckles."

"What do you mean?" Scully's brow furrowed.

"Well, you and I both have freckles on our noses and they say that freckles are fairy footprints, but you can't prove that you were visited by fairies just 'cause you have some freckles on your nose."

I couldn't help grinning over Amy's head at Scully. Her eyes were wide with surprise.

"I've never heard that before," she told our companion quietly.

Amy bobbed her head. "Yeah, and there's lots of fairy rings around here, but I never crossed the veil when I stepped inside one. At least, I don't think I did. What does that mean, 'crossed the veil'? I read that in a book at school about fairy rings."

The difference in Amy's behaviour between the previous night and that afternoon was amazing. I'd been expecting her to be this animated when we had supper together, but she must have known that her dad wouldn't be happy to hear her talk this way.

As we approached the gully I explained how some people believed the fairy realm was separated from the earthly one by a veil and if you could cut a hole in that veil you'd be able to go back and forth between the two realms.

"Fairy rings are thought to be holes in the veil," I finished.

"I didn't cross into the fairy realm," Amy said dejectedly. "So is that stuff just made up?"

"I don't know, Amy." I looked at Scully, but she narrowed her eyes at me and I took her hint. "Maybe not everyone can cross the veil."

"Yeah, maybe." She shrugged. "I wonder if the trilliums are another way to cross and that's why we only see fairies when there are trilliums in the pictures too." She looked up at me.

"Could be." I nodded in agreement. The open mindedness of children never ceased to amaze me.

"Oh," Amy said excitedly. "Maybe trilliums are like windows into the fairy realm, instead of doors, like the fairy rings."

"The trillium flowers do have three petals." I nodded toward a group of them. "Three is supposed to be a magical number."

"Oh, look!" Amy shouted exuberantly. We'd reached the gully and she was pointing at a patch of trilliums there. "Not just three petals, but three small leaves surrounding them and then three bigger leaves. That's lots of threes. Do all of those threes make them extra magical, Agent Mulder?"

"I'm not an expert on magical numerology, but since trilliums are always in the photos with the fairies, it makes sense. Don't you agree, Scully?" I asked as I sat down on a rock.

"I won't argue with you." She set the camera bags down. A slight smile was tugging at her lips.

I needed to argue with Scully more around people she didn't want to upset. I quite enjoyed it.

"The trilliums are starting to wilt." Amy ran her index finger gently over the petals of one bloom. "They'll be gone soon. Then no more fairy pictures 'til next year."

I couldn't help wondering what one year would do to Amy's imagination. When did that curtain drop that signalled the end of childhood? Was it the onset of puberty or an event that triggered the change? I know Scully would say that my curtain still hadn't fallen.

"Well, let's eat this chicken before it gets any colder. And then we'll take some pictures," Scully said decisively, putting an end to my musing.

All but one of the cameras I brought had autofocus, so I had to use all of my film in that one camera. Amy showed me the right shutter speed and where to set the focus and then I began to snap pictures. Having to refocus every shot made it slow work. Scully seemed content to sit on one of the rocks and watch us. I still had one roll left when Amy announced that she had to hurry home to beat her father there and with that, she was off like a jackrabbit.

"Be careful, Amy!" Scully called after her.

Stopping her flight, she turned around to promise, "I will. It was nice to meet you." She smiled openly at us before taking off running again.

"I'll send you copies if I get anything," I yelled to her.

"Thank you!" Her voice was already faint.

Scully had turned to watch Amy leave. A little smile was evident on her face. Before she noticed, I snapped a couple of pictures and then lowered the camera. I stooped to pick one of the trilliums that still looked fresh, retrieved my crutches and hopped over to her, camera bouncing against my chest as I went. Scully turned her eyes toward me in curiosity.

After setting my crutches aside and crouching down in front of her, I tucked her hair behind her ear and wove the flower stem through her hair to keep it in place.

"There." I smiled in satisfaction. "Beautiful."

"Mulder," she murmured and lowered her eyes.

"What?" I sat down about two feet from her. "Am I not allowed to tell you that you're beautiful?" I picked up the camera and took another picture. "It's not like I'm frenching you in the elevator at work."

"Stop wasting film on me," she scolded when she raised her eyes.

"I hardly call it waste." I ignored her and snapped another picture. "The flower suits you. You would've been a popular flower child."

As I spoke, her cheeks grew pink and her eyes slightly hazy. I prayed I still had film left as I pressed the button again. I was rewarded with a satisfying click and then the whir of the film advancing.

"Imagine if we'd been ten years older and we'd met during the summer of love." I grinned at her.

She rolled her eyes at me. "I still only would've been thirteen, Mulder."

"Okay, fifteen years older then." She'd moved a little, so I had to refocus before I could take another picture. "Mmm, a wreath of flowers in your hair, a halter top and some bell-bottom jeans." I sighed at the image.

"I doubt there were many Catholic-schooled navy brats flitting around Haight- Ashbury or Telegraph Avenue in '67, Mulder."

"It's a fantasy, Scully," I complained. "You can do anything you want." She'd always sucked at games like this.

"Okay," she said slowly. Her eyes had grown hazy again making my cock twitch in expectation. "I'm checking out Telegraph Avenue because I've been accepted to Berkley. Missy told me that's where all the hippies hang out. I feel more at home on the west coast because of all the time we spent in San Diego. The east coast just doesn't have the same feel - too uptight. My parents would have kittens if they knew what was going on out here. They've had me under their thumbs for so long that I couldn't wait to get away."

Her blue eyes were fixed on me as she spoke and her husky tone left me feeling breathless.

She moistened her lips with her tongue before continuing, "Thank God my dad is at sea and my mom didn't trust Missy or Bill to look after Charlie. I was worried for a while that she might bring the whole clan so she could help me 'settle in'. Luckily it would've been way too expensive, so I'm here by myself, free to explore. As soon as I turned eighteen, I got myself a prescription for the pill. Mom would kill me if she knew, but I'm planning to learn more than what they'll be teaching in the classroom."

Rising languidly, she seemed to cross the short distance between us in slow motion. I stared up at her, mouth agape, as she straddled my legs and then lowered herself to my thighs. I moved the camera aside to ensure she would be comfortable.

"My hair is ironed, my halter is short, my jeans are tight and my Jesus-sandals are well worn in. How do we meet, Fox?" She practically purred my given name. It was almost enough to make me like it.

My cock jumped gleefully when she rocked against it. My opinion of Scully's role playing abilities flip-flopped dramatically.

"I was at Oxford, but I decided I wanted to do my master's at Berkley. Dad was happy about Oxford. Berkley, not so much, but now that I'm twenty-one, the trust my grandparents set up is in my name, so I can go to school wherever I want."

"I'm so lucky you picked Berkley." The smile on her face made my cock twitch again. "But how do you get your hands on the trust? Your birthday isn't until October."

"Fantasy, Scully," I reminded her before I pulled her into a kiss.

"Sorry, forgot." She laughed into my mouth and then leaned back a little. "Still...how do we meet? I'm taking physics."

"I'm a Good Samaritan." I waggled my eyebrows at her. "I volunteered to show freshmen around campus," I explained before I pulled her close and stuck my tongue into her mouth.

Before I knew what was happening, Scully started to suck my tongue. I groaned and my hips bucked involuntarily. Dropping my hands to her breasts, I discovered her nipples were already hard. She moaned when I ran my thumbs over them, breaking our kiss.

"Didn't you just get here, too?" She asked, breathing hard.

"Huh?" I lowered my lips to her throat.

"How could you show freshmen around? You're new, too."

"Oh, uh..." I ran the tip of my tongue from her collarbone to the little space between her ear and her jaw as I thought. I'd never known anyone who wanted so much detail in their fantasies before. "I've been here for a month already. I had to meet my thesis advisor and go over my proposal, stuff like that."

She planted a soft kiss on my chin and then nodded sagely. "I see. And you decided volunteering to give tours would be a good way to meet co-eds."

"Damn straight," I told her emphatically before capturing her lips with mine.

As I happily explored her mouth with my tongue, I lowered my hands to slide them under her shirt. Unfortunately for me, that ended our little fantasy trip. Scully broke our kiss as soon as my hands touched her skin.

"Mulder, we can't."

"Sure we can." I leaned forward in search of her mouth again. "It's the Summer of Love. Remember?"

"Mulder!" She scooted backwards and scrambled to her feet. "Not here. The Appalachian Trail is right there." She pointed up the slope behind me. "And Amy left us not ten minutes ago. What if she decided to come back for some reason?"

I strongly doubted that was going to happen, but I knew Scully well enough to know there'd be no convincing her.

I grabbed my crutches. "How fast do you think I can get down this mountain on these fucking things?"

Scully must have been as anxious to get back to our hotel as I was because she ignored the speed limit for the entire return trip. Once in our room, I was free to do whatever I wanted, maybe not in the FBI's opinion, but I only cared what Scully thought.

We ended up having the most energetic sex of our short relationship. Okay, we fucked - for a long time. It might have been an hour. I'd never fucked anyone for that long in my life. I knew age was supposed to give me endurance, but I wasn't expecting an hour. The fact that we'd had sex twice that morning probably gave me some added time. Then the raging hard-on I had at the gully waned on the way down the mountain which might have given me some bonus minutes, too. I did slow my pace a couple of times, which confused Scully.

"Why are you stopping?" She looked up at me, slightly dazed.

"Not stopping," I explained as I nuzzled her neck. "Just taking a breather. I don't want to come yet."

"Mmm, okay," she said with a contented sigh.

I didn't think she'd object. After all, she'd already come at least three times. Eventually I let myself come. It was either succumb to orgasm or complete exhaustion. Orgasm seemed like a preferable option. Then I went with the exhaustion. Scully let me nap for about an hour.

She woke me with a sharp slap to my ass. "Go take a shower."

"Still sleepy," I told her, granting her one squinty eye.

"Our plane leaves in two and a half hours. I've showered already and I'm almost finished packing. Now hustle your butt!"

"We're leaving?" I sat up.

"Was there something else you wanted to do here?" She looked at me in confusion.

"Uh," I paused to think. "No, I guess not. I just didn't realize that we'd decided to go."

"I thought the only thing left to do was develop the pictures you took today and I thought you might want Chuck to do that on Monday."

"Yeah, that's a good idea," I acquiesced.

"Besides, I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed," she added as I prepared to get up.

"Okay." I reached for my crutches feeling suddenly deflated. We'd just had what qualified as the best sex of my entire life and Scully was anxious to get home to her bed.

"Mulder," she said with a chuckle as she moved closer to me. "Open." She nudged at my good foot. When I complied wordlessly, she stepped between my legs. "Look at me." Putting a finger under my chin, she lifted my face toward hers. "I meant I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed with you!"

"Oh." I grinned like a fool.

"And I'm not even going to ask what else you possibly could've thought after everything that's happened between us."

"Sorry, Scully. I guess I'm still a little insecure." I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her closer.

"Insecure! Mulder, I love you and an hour ago I think I was shouting that loudly enough for everyone in a five mile radius to hear."

"You were pretty boisterous." The memory flooded me with warmth.

"I'm sorry if I don't say I love you enough other than in bed. It's still hard for me to let my guard down, but please never question the depth of my feelings, Mulder. I love you more than I've ever loved anyone." She kissed the top of my head.

"Love you, too." I breathed into her shirt.

"But that doesn't mean I wouldn't have kicked your ass if you'd balked about leaving just because you hadn't given the word." Her tone held no amusement.

"Yes, dear," I said meekly.

"That's 'yes, ma'am', to you." She still tried to sound stern, but I could hear the smile in her voice. "Now get your ass in the shower!"

Our trip back to DC was uneventful, but by the time we got back to Scully's apartment it was after eleven. Neither of us had the energy for sex, but just spooning up to Scully in her bed fulfilled one of my fantasies, so I fell asleep a happy man.

We both had energy to spare on Sunday morning and I was allowed to indulge my penchant for morning sex. Scully never admitted it, but from the way she enjoyed herself, I think she had a penchant of her own. She also seemed to have a fondness for after-play. Having Scully's soft, warm, sexually sated body close to mine was a trial I would just have to endure for her sake.

After holding her against me as I kissed her softly, I rolled her to her back so I could caress her breasts, strictly in her interest, of course. As I ran my finger around her areola, teasing her nipple to hardness, I noticed she still wasn't wearing her cross. She hadn't worn it the whole time we were in North Carolina, but I assumed she'd been worried about losing it in the woods.

"Scully?" I bent to kiss her nipple before I continued.

"Mmm?" she answered lazily.

"When are you going to put your cross back on? I know we tend to be rambunctious in bed, but I think you're safe to wear it again." I was surprised to feel her body tense at my words. "What?" I lifted my head to look at her.

"I lost it," she told me quietly.

"What!" I sat up. "When?"

"That night we spent in the woods." She pushed herself to a sitting position, as well.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Like what?" She shook her head. "Hey, sorry about your ankle there, Mulder, but I've got more important problems. I lost my necklace."

"We were back on that mountain twice, Scully. We could've looked for it." I felt terrible, knowing how much that necklace meant to her; to us.

She took a deep breath before responding. "Mulder, we never went back to the sink hole, which is where I assume I lost it. And did I lose it when I pulled you out of the hole or when I took my shirt off to use as a compress for you? Or did it break one of those times and it actually fell off when we walked back down to the car?"

"We still could've tried," I argued.

"With you on crutches, Mulder? And how could we possibly have retraced our steps? I'm upset that I lost it. I should've left it at the hotel, but there's nothing we can do."

"I'll get you a new one."

"I appreciate the sentiment, Mulder, but it was the memories attached to that necklace that made it special. It's not replaceable."

"Shit, Scully," I said with a sigh. "I want to do something. Hey!" I said excitedly. "When my ankle is better, we could go back and look. It was nice there. We could have a little vacation."

Her eyes searched my face almost sadly and she brought her hand up to cup my face. "Sure, that's a good idea," she said softly and leaned in to kiss me.

I could tell she was just appeasing me. She didn't hold out any hope of finding her cross again, but I refused to give up that easily. She smiled gently at me when she broke our kiss and stroked my cheek again.

"What are your plans for today?" she asked, obviously trying to change the subject.

"Later on, I thought I might see if Chuck is up for developing the pictures today."

"I thought you might not want to wait until tomorrow," she said with a knowing smile. "Do you mind if I just drop you off for your play date? I'd like to visit my mother."

"You know, Scully, I could use my left foot to drive." I wasn't particularly fond of having to depend on anyone for transportation, even Scully.

"You know, Mulder, as I doctor, I can have your license revoked until I deem you fit to drive."

I could tell by the way her eyes were fixed on me that she was completely serious.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Not unless you force the issue. You'll be fine to drive in about a week. But with one phone call, I can pull your license and Mulder, the paperwork to get it reinstated is atrocious. It could be weeks before you're legal to drive again."

"But why would-"

"Your reaction time wouldn't be the same with your left leg, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let you get killed in a car accident less than a week after I admitted my feelings to you."

"So you're being a bitch because you love me?" I asked with a grin.

She beamed back at me. "Yes."

"Fine, but when my ankle is better, I'm driving."

"Whatever." She rolled away from me. "I'm going for a shower. Are you coming?"

Chuck Burks was more than willing to meet me at his lab to develop my pictures. I knew he would be as anxious as I was to see if I'd been successful. While the film processed I told him about the way Amy had me set up each shot. He was impressed that an eleven year old had the patience to figure out such an elaborate technique. Our conversation gradually drifted toward different photographic methods and then we ended up discussing some digital images from a haunting he was investigating.

"They're spectacular, Mulder." His eyes were wide. "I've never seen anything so clear."

"Won't they be hard to authenticate?"

He grimaced in agreement. "Yeah, that's why I prefer to take the pictures myself. When I joined the Bureau I didn't expect that I was going to be spending the majority of my career proving that extraordinary pictures are fakes."

He sounded so disheartened that I tried to console him. "You do more a more than that, Chuck."

"Not much more," he said with a shrug. "Except when you bring me stuff, Mulder, so let's see what we've got!"

Seconds later the first picture emerged. It showed nothing except a tranquil woodland scene. I tried not to feel let down. When the second picture revealed nothing, it was harder not to be disappointed. When the third showed just trees and flowers, I heaved a dejected sigh.

I was inspecting the pictures more closely when Chuck gasped.

"Holy shit!"

There it was! Exactly like in Amy's pictures; a tiny winged creature hovering in front of the blurry trillium. Sunlight glinted off its delicate wings. The fairy's entire body seemed to radiate light creating a shimmering effect.

"Wow." I stared at it in amazement. "This is better than I'd hoped for."

"It's the fucking Holy Grail, Mulder!" Chuck was breathless.

Only five of the pictures out of all the rolls I took actually had fae in them and only three were as clear as the fourth print, but they were so amazing neither Chuck nor I cared. The few we had were stunning. Every picture I took of Scully was breathtaking. Chuck wasn't quite as impressed with that last roll and looked at me with a somewhat amused expression on his face when they began to emerge from the machine.

He was offering to enlarge the pictures of the fairies so we could get a closer look at their faces when Scully called to say she was on her way back to pick me up.

"It'll take me a couple of hours to make the enlargements," Chuck told me when I got off the phone. "I'll slip them under your door when I'm done." He didn't try to disguise his grin.

"Scully wants to work on the report." I ignored his goofy smile. "I'll just take these and leave you the negatives, okay?"

"Don't forget these ones of Scully." He held them out to me so I could slide them into the envelope. His smile hadn't faded in the least.

"Thanks for your help on this, Chuck and thanks for coming in on a Sunday."

"I'd come in on Christmas day if it meant being a part of the first credible pictures of fairies, Mulder. You know that." He took off one glove and reached for my hand. "Thanks for asking me and let me know if you decide to publish."

"I don't think the Bureau would be happy with that publicity, Chuck, but if someone was to leak a picture or two, without any mention of the FBI..." I gave his hand a firm shake.

Scully and I worked at our report sporadically but managed to have it complete before ten, which was bedtime, or so I was informed. When we arrived at work Monday morning I called Kimberly to set up an appointment with Skinner. She was able to slot us in at eleven.

I spent most of the morning going through my e-mail and flagging anything that looked intriguing. Scully had been asked to consult on a VCS case and said she'd meet me at Skinner's office. I was reading an article on a series of disappearances in Wyoming when my phone rang.

I picked it up distractedly. "Yeah, Mulder."

"What are you doing?" Scully sounded annoyed. "It's after eleven."

Checking my watch, I discovered it was 11:05. "Shit. Be right there."

After quickly gathering up the report and enlargements Chuck had slid under the door, I hurried toward the elevator. Hurrying on crutches is not easy. I dropped the file twice before I got to Skinner's office.

When I hobbled through the door Scully was filling the AD in on my injury.

" - a severe sprain, but it could've been worse. Initially, I was concerned that it was broken."

"Mulder, nice of you to join us," Skinner said dryly. "Your partner was just telling me about your ankle. I hear it's improved."

"Yes, sir. Sorry I'm late. I was researching a potential case." I handed him the file.

"I have to say, Mulder, I was surprised when you expressed an interest in a fraud case, until I read the file." He opened the folder. "Fairies," he said with a remarkably straight face.

"Yes, sir." I nodded.

Scully and I remained silent while Skinner read our report. He remained stoic the entire time. Stealing a glance at Scully, I found her sitting, head hanging, as if she was studying her knees closely. Her eyes flicked over at me. She gave me a look that said she had no idea what Skinner's reaction to our report would be. I gave her a little shrug that said I had no idea, either.

When I looked back at our boss, I found him peering over his glasses at us quizzically. Before I had a chance to react, he dropped his eyes to the report again. Finally, as he flipped through the pictures, he drew a breath and began to speak.

"So, from what I see here, the two of you spent a couple of thousand dollars of the taxpayer's money to go to North Carolina to reproduce some pictures taken by an eleven year old girl."

I straightened up in my chair. "As I see it, sir, we saved the tens of thousands of taxpayer's dollars by stopping the Bureau from pursuing an unwarranted fraud case." "And if Chris McKinnon had sued for defamation, we potentially saved hundreds of thousands."

"Don't press your luck, Mulder." Skinner scowled at me. "The fact that you and Agent Scully were able to produce similar pictures gets Chris McKinnon of the hook and closes this case. Let's leave it at that."

"Yes, sir," I agreed reluctantly.

"And, Mulder," Skinner continued as Scully and I stood up. "While you do seem to have some talent with a camera and the subject is intriguing, I don't think this picture belongs in the case file." He handed a photo to me.

As I took it, Scully leaned in to have a look. I felt her body tense. It was a close-up of her with a trillium behind her ear and lips slightly parted. But it was what her expression seemed to be saying that set the picture apart. Scully would not be pleased that Skinner had seen a photo of her 'fuck me' eyes. I felt my testicles lift into my abdomen in self-defense.

As expected I spent the rest of the day apologizing and doing penance, but to my relief by the time we left work, Scully had forgiven my faux pas. We stopped at the dry cleaners and the grocery store on the way to her apartment. When we got there she made a beeline to the bathroom.

I'd just managed to get myself settled onto the couch when I heard her voice.

"Mulder, did you do this?"

I was positive I'd put the toilet seat down after I used it that morning. "Do what?"

"C'mere."

When I got to there, Scully was pointing at a small shelf to the side of her sink. Her hand was shaking slightly, her eyes wide with shock. I followed her finger to a trillium bloom adorning the shelf.

"I wish I'd thought of it, Scully, but no, I didn't." It was too bad I couldn't claim the romantic gesture. "And I didn't see you bring any back, so how did it get there?"

"Look closer," she whispered, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand up

Leaning forward brought me closer to Scully's arm, and I could see she was covered in goose bumps. As I peered at the flower more closely, I suddenly saw what she was pointing at. And then I too, was covered in gooseflesh.

"You didn't go out this morning and buy it?" Her voice trembled.

"How Scully? I'm not allowed to drive. Remember?"

"Then how did it get here?"

"I could only speculate, but I don't think I'm alone in thinking you're extraordinary." I smiled as I carefully pulled her cross from its nest in the cone of the flower.

End chapter 10

End Smoky Mountain Folk


End file.
